Family
by TatorTotTottish
Summary: A sequel to "Secrets," Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde are starting a family, but they quickly find that preparing for children is much more than they are prepared for. See "Conversations" and "Working It Out" for more context. JudyxNick
1. Chapter 1

"Wow," Nick Wilde breathed.

There they were, seated in their registered Zootopia Police Department SUV, trying to comprehend how their life had taken a sudden turn in such a short period of time. It was just him and Judy Hopps… and their baby, or babies, technically.

"Yeah, that pretty much sums it up," Judy laughed. "What are we doing with our lives?"

Nick looked over at Judy, her face barely visible in the dim light of the moon. It was already nearing midnight, and the two sat outside of the ZPD in their SUV, avoiding the birthday party that was taking place in the lobby of the building.

"This," Nick answered as he opened his car door. He jumped out onto the pavement below and turned around to Judy, who was watching him with interest. Nick held out a paw to her. "Come on, Carrots."

"What are you doing?"

"Just trust me. Come here real quick."

Giving Nick a skeptical look as she did so, Judy slid over the passenger's seat to Nick and took his paw. He helped her down and then shut the car door once she was safely out of the way. "What are we doing, Nick?"

"I'm doing what I should have done in the first place. I'm sorry I thought you cheated. I'm sorry I ruined the party you planned for me. We are going to go back in there and do this the right way."

Judy blinked back tears.

"Whoa, what's wrong? Why are you being emotional?"

Judy sniffled a laugh and put her head against Nick's chest. "You are amazing," she cried. He brought her closer and kissed the top of her head.

"You bunnies, so emotional." Nick waited a few seconds to give Judy time to calm herself before sweeping her up into his arms in one fluent motion, which caused her to let out a surprised squeal.

"Come on, Carrots, let's do this." Nick began walking. "Man, I can feel you already getting heavier," Nick chuckled.

Judy gave him a look and pulled on his ear as punishment for the sarcastic remark. "I would do a lot worse if it weren't for the current situation."

"I believe you, I'm already covered in punch."

"I know, you're staining my clothes." Nick scoffed. "Who cares about clothes when you're starting a family?"

"I think starting a family gives you more of a reason to care about clothes, actually, Nick," Judy grinned. Nick turned and used his back to push open the ZPD doors. The party was in full swing, and no one really seemed to notice them… well, almost.

"Nick! Judy!" Clawhauser yelled in a gloriously loud voice from across the lobby. The majority of the room quickly turned their attention to the couple, Judy in Nick's arms. It was clear that their thoughts centered along the lines of, "ooooh, what's the next drama gonna be?" Judy felt her face getting hot as her cheeks flushed. At least things couldn't get any worse…

"Hey everyone." Oh Lord, why was Nick even talking?

"Nick, why are you even talking?" Judy whispered to him. He glanced down at her but then continued as if nothing had happened.

"We have an announcement."

"Wait, no, Nick. I don't think we should tell everyone right now—"

"We're having a baby!" Half of the room erupted in cheers and congratulatory remarks, while the other half stood in complete awe and a little confused.

"Niiiiiiiiiiiiick," Judy hid her face in her hands. Nick leaned in and kissed the top of her head before whispering, "This is payback for lying to me about the party."

Judy gave him a punch to the arm, trying to contain her laughter. "Jokes on you, you're stuck with a family now. Oh, and by the way, I'm pretty sure it's 'babies,' not 'baby,'" Judy chuckled as she hopped down from Nick's grasp. His eyes widened as the realization struck him. The crowd was now beginning to close in on them to continue the party and begin the celebration of a new family.

"Happy birthday," Judy smirked as she turned and greeted a few of the other officers.

The night went by in a complete blur as each animal had a chance to talk to the parents-to-be.

"OMgoodness, Judy, tell me there's a baby shower!" Clawhauser had practically cried as he picked up Judy in a massive hug. Fru Fru had already pulled out ideas for a nursery and was presenting them to Nick, who was trying not to look at the Chief, who looked… well, _pissed_. Finnick had made several sexual remarks as he was already downing his fourth cup of the punch that had most likely been spiked.

After all of the socializing had seemed to cease, the party went back into full swing. Night turned to early morning as the clock quickly neared 3:00 AM. Proof of the punch being spiked was apparent as some animals had to drag friends or themselves to cars and cabs. Some animals had left much earlier in the night, such as Fru Fru and her family, as well as Clawhauser and the Chief, while others remained. Finnick was practically dead. Judy had to drag him off of a potted plant and into the back seat of the SUV her and Nick shared. Unfortunately, the act of carrying a fox, even a fennec fox, was no easy task for a little bunny, especially a little bunny who was doing it _alone_.

Finnick wasn't the only one who began throwing back drinks as the night progressed.

"Nick, we're going home."

Nick was drunkenly draped over the reception desk of the ZPD. Empty plastic cups littered the area around him, as well as the entire lobby. In the simplest terms, the Zootopia Police Department was absolutely trashed. A tired, yet completely sober Judy nudged Nick and repeated her words. Nick moved slightly, his eyes fluttered open and caught sight of the bunny who was impatiently thumping her foot, her arms crossed. The fox was awake, but far from lucid; his reply was a jumble of words. Judy rolled her eyes.

"Nick," she whined. "Your boyfriend is in the car and I'm pretty sure he'll have alcohol poisoning after tonight, so let's go." Judy tugged Nick off of the desk and got him onto his feet. The two then began stumbling to the exit.

"Nick, use your feet!" Judy couldn't help but giggle as the fox leaned heavily on her for support. "You're huge!"

"Mmm. Did you just-just call me fat?" he mumbled in between hiccups.

Judy laughed again as she shoved him upward before helping him through the doors of the ZPD. After what felt like an eternity later, Judy finally was able to shove Nick into the passenger seat, get herself into the car, and begin driving home. Judy sighed as the car sped down Main Street. "Finnick will just have to sleep at our place tonight."

Nick gave a quiet giggle. "What's up with you, Slick?" Judy glanced over at the intoxicated animal. "I was just thinking about-about the best part-the best part of us."

"The best part of us?"

"I mean-I mean the best part-the best part of this-this-this baby thing."

Judy chuckled at his word choice. "Okay, and what would that be?"

"Ha, I-I think the best-the best part is that-that we _totally_ had sex!" Nick whispered in a slurred voice.

Judy couldn't help but laugh and shake her head. "You are so drunk."

"And you-you are adorable."

"You are going to feel this in the morning." Judy pulled into a parking space in front of the apartment complex and shut off the engine. Judy moved to open the car door, but Nick leaned across the middle seat that separated them and stopped her.

"Hey, hey, I have to t-tell ya something."

Rolling her eyes, Judy turned back to face him. "What is it?"

"I have to tell you something, but-but you can't tell-ya can't tell Judy."

Judy's eyebrows shot up. "Oh Lord, this outta be good. Nick, I am Judy."

Nick put a paw to her lips and silenced her with a cascade of shushing. "Don't tell her! You can't tell her… she'd kill me!"

Judy suddenly became very suspicious at the way Nick was acting, no matter how drunk he was. "Okay… I won't tell her. What is it?"

"I-I haven't told her yet, but-but I-I _really_ need to."

"What is it? What haven't you told her?"

"That-that I love her-I love her a lot… she knows it, but I-I'm scared, ya know…? Scared to tell-to tell her-to tell Judy. She thinks a lot of me, that silly, silly, rabbit… I dunno if I'm w-worth it... and now-and-and now there's a baby! …Or babies? I dunno how this works, but-but I dunno if I can be-if I can be a father, but I wanna be one. I wanna do this right…"

Judy felt tears threaten to spill as she looked at her soon-to-be-majorly-hung-over boyfriend. Here he was, this perfect creature, and the best part? This perfect fox was going to be the father of her children. Judy leaned in to kiss him, but he pulled away suddenly. "Hey! I got a girlfriend!"

Judy couldn't help but smile at him. She then leaned in again. "Nick, I'm Judy!" she giggled, their faces inches apart.

"You're Carrots?"

"I'm Carrots."

"Carrots! When did you get here?"

Judy giggled again. "I've been here, Babe." Nick gave her a confused look as if he were deep in thought.

"I love ya, Carrots," he finally mumbled before resting his forehead against hers.

"I love you too, Nick."

It took almost thirty minutes for Judy to drag both Nick and Finnick up to the apartment that her and Nick shared. Finnick was dragged up first, but Judy was so tired by the time that she had dragged him up two floors that she just left him on the floor as soon as she entered the apartment. Nick was next, and although he was conscious, he was twice as heavy as Finnick and twice as hard to control. After both foxes were lying on the floor by the front door, Judy went and showered and then quickly fell asleep in Nick's – _their_ – bed.

The next morning, Nick woke up with a major headache and an overall feeling of dread. "Ugggggh," he groaned as he sat up. He was lying on the wooden floor in the living room, near the front door.

"What happened?" Nick rubbed his head, trying to rub the ache away.

"Oh, are you finally awake?"

Nick looked up to see Judy just a few feet away in their small kitchen, hard at work at the stove, cooking something that smelled amazing. Nick glanced over and saw Finnick still passed out on the floor. "When did he get here?"

"Oh, he's been here. Coffee?"

Nick nodded groggily. "I had the craziest dream, Carrots, you would never believe it."

"Hit me, I think I can take it."

"You're gonna laugh at me."

Judy rolled her eyes. "After last night, I don't think I am physically capable of laughing anymore."

"Wait… what did I do last night?"

"Nothing," Judy giggled. "Tell me about the dream."

"Promise you won't laugh?"

"Promise."

"Alright, well, you told me this thing. It was so weird," Nick rubbed his head again as he tried to remember the "dream."

"We were at this party, no idea what for, and you told me you were – and don't laugh – you told me you were pregnant. Ha, crazy, I know." Nick looked at Judy, who was standing and staring at him, a huge grin on her face. "Hey, you said you wouldn't laugh!"

Judy began giggling at Nick's glare. "Nick, Honey, you're in for a shock."

"Why?"

"Wasn't a dream, Nick…" Judy walked over and handed a steaming mug to Nick, carefully watching his perplexed expression.

"What?"

Judy grinned at him. "Nick, it wasn't a dream. I'm actually pregnant."

 _SMASH!_

"Aw, Nick, that was my favorite mug!" Ignoring the hot coffee that was staining the floor next to him, Nick shot up to his feet. This was a huge mistake, however, as Nick's headache immediately brought about a dizzy nauseous feeling as he swayed on the spot. Judy reached out to steady him.

"You okay?" she asked.

"You're what?" he blurted suddenly. Judy looked up into his bright green eyes.

"I'm pregnant, Nick. Don't tell me you really can't remember."

"We're having a baby…"

"Or babies," Judy chimed in.

Nick ran a paw over his face before leaning in and gently resting his head against Judy's.

"You stink," she giggled.

Nick chuckled slightly as he silently agreed. "Wow, we're having a baby."

"Or babies," Judy sang once again.

Nick gave her a look. "Stop saying that, you're freaking me out."

"That's my job."

"Well, then, mission accomplished."


	2. Chapter 2

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Oh, quit whining and pull over!"

"This is stupid, Carrots."

"Ugh, you're stupid!"

Nick briefly turned to look at his girlfriend, who was currently comfortably seated in the passenger seat of their ZPD SUV, and narrowed his eyes.

"Did you just call me 'stupid?'"

"No-! Err-yes-! Kinda…?" Judy's fiery attitude came to a speedy halt as she attempted to explain herself, while Nick scoffed.

"What are you, like five years old?"

"I'll have you know that I am a mature adult with perfectly good insults! Now, pull over!"

"You don't need pickles right now, Rabbit!"

Judy threw her paws in the air and dramatically flung her body back against her seat. Clearly defeated, she began to pout like a small child. Nick rolled his eyes as he focused on the road.

The two were currently making their way to Tundra Town, where their mission was to keep an eye on some polar bears who had recently been up to some "suspicious activity," as stated by multiple witnesses. Judy, now ten weeks pregnant, had begun craving pickles (of all things), sparking a small argument between the two. Nick usually would get her anything she wanted or needed, due to her precious situation, but this was the fourth time this week she had interrupted something somewhat important just for a craving.

That morning, she had broken down in tears because they didn't have any carrot cake in their apartment.

"When do we ever have carrot cake?" Nick had asked, shocked.

"I don't know, but we need some _now_!" she had wailed in reply. This whole conversation had taken place while Nick had been in the shower, as Judy couldn't wait for him, so rather, she decided to barge into the bathroom and tear down the shower curtain. Nick had screamed like a girl, but that hadn't stopped Judy from her onslaught about carrot cake.

Besides the new mood swings, cravings, and the occasional morning sickness, Judy's pregnancy was progressing fairly well. Of course, everyone knew of the couple's expectancy… well, everyone except Judy's parents.

She was a bit hesitant to tell the pair, as she was unsure of their reaction to her dating a fox, much less having children with him. Things were also a bit complicated to explain to her parents at the moment, since Nick and Judy weren't married. Nick had been planning to pop the question on Judy's birthday, but that was still months away, and he could tell that she was growing anxious about her parents not knowing. Neither one of the two wanted to tell Judy's parents about the pregnancy until they were married, but they couldn't wait much longer, or Judy would be too pregnant to lie to her parents. That was another wrench in the works: Judy didn't want to lie to her parents, which Nick didn't blame her for, but it sure didn't make things easier. On the other hand, Nick hadn't told his mother about the pregnancy either. In fact, he hadn't even told _Judy_ about his mother. Judy had dragged him up to meet her parents a little while after they had first met, where he had been introduced as her (work) partner and nothing more, but Nick had never gotten around to tell Judy about his family.

His father had died years ago from all of the stress that life had brought him, and with no siblings or other immediate family, it was just his mother left. He talked to her often, and she knew that he was involved with a sweet bunny named Judy, who also happened to work with him, but that was about it. Although Nick could be labelled as a "momma's boy," he hadn't exactly shared everything with mommy dearest. Nick groaned internally at the thought of telling his mother he was going to be a father, especially since grandchildren were the only thing Mrs. Wilde truly wanted. Telling his mother was another hurtle the couple had to overcome in such a short period of time, but that wasn't all: Nick still had to tell Judy about his mother.

Oh, how life is messy.

The two drove on in silence for a few more minutes before coming to a park along a dim snow-covered street.

"You're starving me to death on purpose," Nick heard Judy mutter under her breath.

"Starving you? Well, how dare I!" he exaggerated with paws flailing. He continued when he saw a small smile begin to take shape on her face. "How on earth can a bunny survive without pickles? My God, I guess I didn't pay attention to the Bunny Manuel as well as I thought I had!"

"Oh, shut up," she giggled.

"No, I'm serious! I hope you read the Fox Manuel better than I read the Bunny Manuel, or else we're in trouble," Nick laughed as he reached for the rabbit, pulling her closer.

"I just wanted some pickles, geez," Judy sighed as Nick pulled her in for a quick kiss. The weather outside was cold, but the small space inside their car remained a toasty warm as they conversed.

"Yeah, well I just want some peace and quiet after all of your nagging." Nick heard Judy's sound of indignation and then soon felt the familiar dull thump of her fist punching him in the shoulder. He chuckled at her angry expression.

"Kidding," he smirked. Nick then turned his attention back to the outside world, keeping his eyes out for anything suspicious. Judy quickly followed his lead. A few minutes passed as the two witnessed nothing but the glistening snow falling heavily just outside the glass. It was Nick who broke the silence.

"We need to talk."

"Uh-oh, are we breaking up?" Judy joked.

Nick gave her a smile before continuing. "We have to tell your parents, Carrots."

Nick was setting up for the inevitable. Unbeknownst to Judy, Nick had actually already used her phone to message her parents and let them know that they were visiting this weekend, and that they had some big news. He had also let the Chief know, just in case there was a work emergency. In just two days' time, he would pack all of their things in the middle of the night, place them in the car, carefully put a sleeping Judy into the passenger seat, and begin the drive to her home. Nick could already hear Judy screaming at him for doing things behind her back, which Nick was ready to counter with the incident she had pulled with his birthday party just a few weeks ago.

"Nick, we've been over this, we can't tell them-"

"Until we're married, I know, but I think it's time to consider telling them before then." Nick sighed as he saw Judy's face fall. "Carrots, I know you want to do this right, but they're your parents. We can't keep lying to them. Plus, even if I proposed today, it would still be at least another month until the wedding."

"We can just have a quick wedding that only takes ten minutes at the court house."

"But I know that isn't what you want. I know you want all of your family to be there, and I want you to have the best night of your life, not a rushed ten minutes. And besides, I don't want to propose to you in this car. I want to surprise you and make it a huge deal in front of our friends and family."

"Really?" Nick could see the joyful tears welling up in Judy's eyes. "I know, doesn't sound like the usual Nick Wilde, but really," he smirked.

Judy laughed. "You're right; the usual Nick Wilde would probably propose to me, get Finnick to steal the ring, and then you two would sell it for a better profit."

"Who said I wasn't still going to do that?"

Judy gave Nick another playful punch to the arm as he chuckled at his own sarcasm. A comfortable silence fell between them for a few seconds, until...

"What about your parents, Nick? When are we telling them?"

Nick froze. This was the one thing he had been dreading. "Nick?" Judy asked, suspicious.

"Uh, we can't tell them because… they, well, because…"

Judy gasped and put her paws to her heart. "Oh, Nick, I'm so sorry! I had no idea that your parents passed away!"

Oh no. Nick's ears flattened to his head as he realized how his hesitation may have come across as sorrowful loss of family.

"No, Carrots, my parents aren't dead. Well, at least my mom isn't-Whoa!" Nick quickly shot up in his seat as he saw two polar bears cross the street in front of the SUV and enter a dark building, all while glancing around with stiff glares. Nick quickly grabbed his phone and began taking pictures, only to be interrupted by the sound of a car door opening.

"Hopps, what are you doing?" Nick hissed as he saw Judy slide from her seat onto the snow-covered sidewalk below her open car door.

"Come on," she commanded, beckoning with her paw.

"This is just an observe and record mission, Rabbit!" Nick exclaimed as he clamored from the car, while trying to keep up with Judy. When he looked up, she was already standing with her back pressed up against the dark building, hiding in the shadows. Nick huffed an agitated sigh before slinking over to her location.

"So what's this about your mother now?" was the question that greeted him.

"Are you crazy?" Nick whispered angrily.

"Oh, stop whining. We can observe better from inside."

" _Inside_? Have you lost it?"

" _Shhhh_! Do you want to get caught? Come on." Judy grabbed Nick's paw, and together they lurked through the shadows until they came upon the door the two bears had entered through. Judy began to inch the door open as quietly as she could manage, while Nick stood there, anxiety taking over.

"This is an awful idea," he whispered.

"No, this is a great idea," Judy grinned as she creaked the door open. "We are going to solve this case, and then I'm going to meet your mother. Win-win for everyone!"

Nick rolled his eyes as Judy chuckled devilishly. When the door was finally open wide enough, Nick tried to take the lead by entering the building first, but Judy shot in front of him. Nick suddenly grew very tense as an unfamiliar feeling crept through his body. Something wasn't right. He didn't like that Judy was going into this dark, decrepit, old building, especially since she was pregnant.

"Carrots!" Nick reached out and gripped Judy's arm before she was out of reach.

"What are you doing?"

"I don't like this." Nick shivered, but couldn't tell if it was from the cold or this new worried feeling he was having. Judy rolled her eyes at him before prying her arm away.

"Nick, stop joking around." She turned and began to enter the building again, but this time, Nick grabbed her arm and held onto it with all of his might.

"Let go," Judy whispered, a little annoyed.

"No, I don't like this at all. Something doesn't feel right. Let's go back to the car."

"Stop being ridiculous, nothing is going to happen."

"You don't know that. It's too dangerous for you."

"Why, because I'm pregnant?"

"Yes! Please, just go back to the car with me. Please, just _know when to quit_ , Judy." Judy stood silent for a few moments, studying Nick's frightened eyes.

"Fine," she finally sighed. "Give me your phone and I'll call the Chief to let him know what we saw."

Grateful for her sanity and common sense, Nick released hold of her and then looked down at his pocket in search of his phone.

That's when it happened. That's when Judy took off into the building, leaving Nick out on the street with a stunned look on his face and his paw half way in his pocket. That's when Nick felt the worried feeling grow; it spread like fire through his chest as his mind raced. He hadn't even had the chance to move when Judy's scream rang out into the street. That scream rang in Nick's ears as he made his way into the building with blood pumping furiously, and that scream continued to ring in his ears when he came across the horrific sight that awaited him.

That scream would haunt Nick forever.


	3. Chapter 3

Nick had never been one to cry often, but that didn't mean he didn't cry at all. He cried when those Junior Ranger Scouts muzzled him once during his childhood, he cried when his father died, and he cried when Judy nearly had her throat ripped out by that silver fox almost a year ago, but now... he didn't cry at all.

Now, Nick blankly stared up at the ceiling of the ambulance as the vehicle quickly sped to the Zootopia Hospital. He was strapped to a gurney with tubes and wires going here and there. A mask was strapped to his face in order to help him breathe. In any other situation, he would have been highly anxious due to the feeling of being muzzled the mask was giving him, but right now, he wasn't even focused on how much of his blood was soaking into the bandages the antelope paramedics were constantly changing.

No, Nick was focused on Judy. Nick was focused on his girlfriend... his pregnant girlfriend... his pregnant girlfriend who was currently in a second ambulance on her way to the same place as him. A million questions flooded his mind as he stared at the white metal above his head. Did he get to her in time? How hurt was she? Was the baby okay? Were the babies okay? Her scream still echoed in his ears...

 _"Stop being ridiculous, nothing is going to happen."_

 _"You don't know that. It's too dangerous for you."_

 _"Why, because I'm pregnant?"_

 _"Yes! Please, just go back to the car with me. Please, just_ know when to quit _, Judy."_

 _"Fine… Give me your phone and I'll call the Chief to let him know what we saw."_

Then she was gone, dashing into the building without him. He heard her scream. He ran after her and –

Judy had been lying on the floor, a shallow, but large set of gashes in her left side. Above her, towered two massive polar bears, both snickering. In that moment, Nick realized that the entire thing had been a set up; the polar bears had known the police were tailing them, and had waited patiently for a naive bunny to come bounding in, quickly followed by her improvising fox partner.

"Judy!" Nick had screamed before darting to her. She had been holding a paw to her side to stop the little, but steady flow of blood from her wound. As soon as he reached her, Nick had placed a paw over hers, gently applying more pressure. Looking up to survey the room, Nick realized with horror that there were two more polar bears leaning against the wall just behind the first pair. It was then that another horrific thought dawned on him: they had never stood a chance, not against these four massive bears, but then again, that was probably the whole point...

Looking around once more, Nick noted that the room was dark, only lit by a few dim lights and the bright moon that was peeking through the windows, and that there were several boxes stacked around large tables and shiny cars. The building was a typical make-shift base of operations. One of the polar bears that had been close to Judy when Nick had first arrived, stepped forward, resulting in a low growl escaping from Nick's throat. Now in a protective stance around Judy, Nick glared up at the massive bear. "Get back," he hissed. The bear laughed a hearty chuckle that shook his shoulders. All of the bears were in sleek navy suits, giving them a very serious persona, and once the bear stopped laughing, he carefully smoothed his suit with a gigantic paw. That paw, Nick noted, contained claws that were stained by blood... Judy's blood.

"You made a stupid decision coming here, little fox," the bear spoke confidently. "We're about to show you exactly what happens when you mess with us."

In the minutes that followed, Nick was beaten down to nothing more than colors of black, blue, and purple, but he stood his ground, ensuring that Judy was not touched. However, his vision was beat from him after a certain period of time, and whether or not Judy was further injured, he was unsure. Other details were also fuzzy, such as how long the two had been in the building and who called for help. Did Judy call for help? If she did, did that mean she wasn't hurt too badly? These questions also haunted Nick as he continued to stare upward. Although Nick had wavered in and out of consciousness after too many hits, he remembered seeing Judy lying on the hard floor next to him in the building, seeing the paramedics arrive, seeing the Chief and hearing that everything was going to be okay from the massive ox, and seeing Judy being loaded into an ambulance, but none of these things made him feel better. " _We didn't even have our tranquilizers_ ," Nick thought. " _We didn't stand a chance and I just let her go into that building. This is all my fault. Oh, God, please let Judy be okay. Please, let her be okay. This is all my fault_."

That last sentence played over and over in Nick's head on the way to the hospital until those five words were burned into his brain. Those five words made Nick cry, even though Nick had never been one to cry often.

Once at the hospital, Nick was immediately taken through several different procedures and tests to determine exactly how much damage the polar bears had done. He never saw Judy, even though the first words out of his mouth were always along the lines of "have you seen my girlfriend? Is she okay? She's a little gray bunny. Please, she's two months pregnant," whenever he saw a nurse or a doctor. Eventually he was sedated for medicinal purposes.

Judy went through the same process Nick went through when she arrived at the hospital just a few moments after his arrival. Her injuries were lesser in extent, tallying up to four severe gashes (one of which went as deep as to expose a small portion of an unharmed rib), severe bruising, a broken humerus, and a broken clavicle, all on her left side. The rest of her body escaped primarily unharmed, with only a few scrapes and bruises here and there. Nick's injuries, on the other hand, tallied up to a ruptured spleen, three shattered ribs, a snapped leg, a total of five different sets of four severe gashes (almost all tearing into the lover levels of his muscles), and severe bruising all over his body. Judy remained awake for the entirety of the night's events, witnessing Nick's brush with death, the arrival of help, the trip to the hospital, and the treatment of her wounds. It didn't take long for Judy to be bandaged up, have her bones reset and cast, and to give her statement to the Chief about what happened, all while asking about Nick, only to receive awkward silence in reply.

By the time Judy had been comfortably placed in a hospital room for two, Nick had been taken to surgery to deal with his ruptured spleen and a few other complications with his internal organs that had arisen since his hospital arrival. In the room, Judy was informed of Nick's condition, which quickly broke her down in tears. On top of his sustained injuries, Nick had begun bleeding internally, which surgeons were attempting to counter at that very moment. The doctor, a stoutly little female badger, attempted to calm Judy by also letting her know that her babies were perfectly fine and that from what the ultrasound had revealed, her and Nick were expecting four little babies. " _Four_ babies?" Judy had asked, incredulous.

"Yes, ma'am. Congratulations!"

"Ha, ohhhh, Nick is going to love this," Judy chuckled at the thought of Nick's reaction-to-come. She remembered what he had said when she informed him about the possibility of having more than one baby.

 _"Stop saying that, you're freaking me out."_

 _"That's my job."_

 _"Well, then, mission accomplished."_

The news did cheer Judy up slightly, but this joy quickly vanished when she was left alone in the room with an empty bed that Nick would later fill. Nick's surgery lasted almost three hours, resulting in Judy calling her parents and informing them of the incident.

"Yes, I'm okay, but could you two come down here?... Thank you... I love you too, see you soon... Bye."

Sighing heavily, Judy leaned back on the two large fluffy pillows that occupied her stiff hospital bed. Careful to not move her left side too much, Judy placed a paw on her abdomen.

"Hi, babies," she whispered. "It's mommy. Daddy isn't here right now, but he'll be here very, very soon, okay?" Judy felt tears sting her eyes at the thought of Nick. "I can't wait for you to meet him," she whispered as the tears spilled over and streamed down her cheeks. Her head filled with thoughts of Nick:

 _"…Officer...?"_

 _"Hopps! Mr…?"_

 _"Wilde, Nick Wilde."_

 _…_

 _"I think I – no, I know I-I love you. I love you, Nick."_

 _…_

 _"I love you, too, Darling."_

...

 _"Yes."_

 _"'Yes' what?"_

 _"Yes, I'll be your girlfriend, Nicholas IDon'tCareWhatYourMiddleNameIs Wilde."_

 _…_

 _"Thank you"_

 _"What for, Carrots? The kiss?"_

 _"For letting me know when to quit."_

 _…_

 _"Then again, I'm already yours for life, right?"_

 _…_

 _"You muzzle me, but you know, in a good way. I love the way you muzzle me."_

 _…_

 _"Ha, I-I think the best-the best part is that-that we_ totally _had sex!"_

...

 _"Nick, I'm pregnant."_

 _"Wow."_

 _…_

 _"Please, just_ know when to quit _, Judy."_

But she _didn't_ know when to quit, and that's what landed them here in the first place.

"This is all my fault," Judy sobbed as she covered her face with her hands. "This is all my fault. This is all my fault. This is all my fault."

Outside, late night was turning into early morning, but it was nearly impossible to tell with the drizzle of rain that tainted the sky in a perfect gray. Outside, the world bustled as animals awoke to go to jobs or care for families, while a little bunny sat crying in a hospital bed, waiting for her fox to safety get out of surgery, which was taking place just upstairs.

" _This is all my fault_."


	4. Chapter 4

"Nick...? Nick?"

Nick had been returned to the hospital room he and Judy were sharing around 5:00 in the morning. Unfortunately, Judy had been falling asleep, and she had only been able to keep her eyes open long enough for the doctor to inform her that Nick's surgery had gone very well. Judy then didn't wake until late morning, hours later. She had nearly forgotten Nick was there, first checking her phone to see when her parents would arrive and then readjusting herself to a more comfortable position before she even glanced in his direction. He was still heavily sleeping, but she was hoping that he would wake up soon. She needed to hear his voice, to know that he wasn't as badly injured as she thought he had been. When the gang of bears had finally stopped hitting Nick, they had left, leaving Judy (the only one able to walk at that point) to go back to their SUV and call for backup. When she had come back for Nick, blood was everywhere, making her absolutely sick to her stomach, but now, as she rested in a stiff hospital bed, she began to convince herself that things always look much worse than they actually were in the first few minutes of an incident.

"Nick… Nick… Nick!"

Keeping her voice to a whisper, as not to startle him, Judy continued to call Nick's name. "Nicholas Wilde, I don't care how hurt you are, you better wake up and tell me you're okay!"

Judy ranted quietly as she hoisted herself to a slouched sitting position on her large pillows. It was apparent that a nurse had come in and refilled Judy's painkillers sometime while she had been sleeping, as she now felt better than ever. Yes, her wounds were still a dull ache and no matter what medicine she took, the pain in her arm would remain the same, but she genuinely felt much better; now she just had to see if Nick was feeling better too.

" _Nick_! Get up, Wilde, or I'll call your mother. Yeah, don't think I forgot about what you said. I know she's alive, and I _fully_ plan on calling her once I get a paw on your phone-"

"Carrots, Jesus, do you _ever_ stop talking?"

His voice was so low and husky that it was doubtful whether anyone but a bunny with keen ears could have heard it. Judy heard it, though, and it brought an instantaneous smile to her lips. She couldn't even reply at first, because she was just so happy to hear his voice, to _hear_ the smirk on his face that she knew was there.

"Carrots? You aren't over there calling my mom, are you?"

Judy giggled, tears now stinging her eyes once again.

"Afraid of your mother, Nick?" she mocked.

"Oh, most definitely. You should be too, considering all she has ever wanted is grandchildren, and since you're giving her just that, she's going to be all over you."

Just then, at the thought of their baby, Nick and Judy's eyes finally met. At first, Nick had been lost among a sea of blankets and pillows, his ears the only thing visible to Judy. But now, ever so slowly and painfully, Nick turned his head to the side and slightly up.

"Oh, Nick…"

Judy used her uninjured paw to cover her mouth at the sight of the fox. He was recognizable, but he looked like absolute hell. All covered in deep bruises and swollen cuts, Nick wouldn't be catching any ladies' attention for a while, but that didn't matter.

"Lemme guess, I look like crap?"

Judy nodded, a sad frown on her face. Nick mulled this confirmation over a little bit before replying.

"You gonna dump me now that I'm ugly, Carrots?" he grinned.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Judy replied with a smile of her own.

The playful conversation then took a turn down a slightly darker path as Nick's eyes skimmed over Judy's body, briefly pausing to assess her injuries and her abdomen.

"I'm fine," she stated when she saw his concern. "Actually, _we're_ fine."

That brought a small smile to Nick's face again.

"My parents are coming down from Bunnyburrow soon. They had to find someone to babysit my siblings while they're away, but they should be here in a few hours."

"That's good."

"I'm going to tell them."

"That's not so good, but still good."

Judy chuckled slightly, and then glanced over Nick's injuries. "How are you feeling?"

"Could be better, but not too bad. How about you?"

"I feel pretty good actually."

"I'm glad to hear it."

The two paused and smiled at one another, before Judy laughed. "Why do all of the bad things always happen to us?"

"You said it yourself, our life is like one big movie."

"But don't you ever get tired of it?"

"Do you?" Nick's tone sounded slightly offended, as if he were hurt that Judy didn't like the chaos that came along with their life. Judy glanced over at Nick and bit her lip in thought, trying to think of the best way to express her feelings. Nick beat her to the answer, however.

"I never get tired of it. I could watch our movie over and over again for hours. It's my favorite movie."

"Really?"

"Well, I mean, it's a close call between our movie and Kung Fu Panda 2, but yeah, I would say it's my favorite."

Judy giggled. "You're ridiculous, but I agree."

"Of course you agree, Kung Fu Panda 2 was amazing."

"No, I mean I agree with the whole 'it's my favorite movie' thing!"

"Oh," Nick grinned as Judy continued to laugh. "So, what were you saying about my mother?"

"You should call her."

"I would if I hadn't become a polar bear's chew toy."

"I could call her for you."

"Thanks, Carrots, but I should probably be the one to call. My mother loves you, but she'd kill me if I wasn't the one to tell her what happened."

"I understand… Do you want me to call a nurse to get your phone for you?"

"Uh… We don't have to call her _right now_. And besides, I'm pretty sure my phone is broken."

"What do you mean?"

"I think I dropped it when I ran into the building. I'm not exactly sure, since my paw was in my pocket, but I think I accidentally dropped it then."

"I'm sorry, this was all-"

"Don't say it. It wasn't. I've had a lot of time to think, and it wasn't your fault and it wasn't mine. I understand why you went into the building, and you understand why I tried to stop you, so let's just leave it at that."

With those words, Nick looked over and winked at Judy, making Judy blush slightly. Then, silence fell over the hospital room for the first time in almost half an hour, but it didn't last long. "I really need to ask a question, but I'm honestly afraid to ask it," Nick sighed.

Judy's head perked up slightly, waiting for him to continue. When he didn't, she nudged him forward.

"What do you need to ask?"

For a moment, Nick closed his eyes, as if he already knew the answer and was absolutely dreading the moment when he would hear it.

"Is the baby okay?"

"You mean 'are the babies okay?'"

"No offense, Carrots, but now is really not the time to be freaking me out."

"No, Nick, it really is 'babies,' not 'baby.'"

Nick's eyes flew open and immediately found Judy's. His expression consisted of a mix between joy and pure fear.

"How many?"

Judy didn't reply, she just grinned at him evilly.

"Oh, Carrots, don't do this."

"Guess."

Nick's head shot up, but at the pain, he immediately rested it back down against his pile of pillows.

"Rabbit, did you just tell me to _guess_?"

"Yep."

"You gotta be kidding me."

"You think it's adorable and you know it."

"Is it more or less than ten?"

"Good God, Nick, _ten_? You're joking, right?"

"Okay, so less than ten. More or less than five?"

"Less."

"Okay, I'm liking these odds. More or less than three?"

"More."

That's when Nick went silent. Judy waited anxiously for his reply, trying to catch a glimpse of his face, only to be limited by her busted arm. It was almost a full minute later when she saw his ears perk up, making her anxiety disappear. Those perked ears could only mean one thing…

"We're having four babies," Nick laughed. "Wow, I honestly cannot believe it."

"I can't believe it either," Judy chuckled.

"Okay, Carrots, I've got a name for one of the kids. You wanna hear it?"

"Of course."

"Laverne."

"My middle name?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"

"If a kid's name is Laverne, then I get to name another Piberius."

"Okay, then we're agreed. At this point, none of the kids have names, because we are not naming a kid Piberius. God, do you want him to get bullied, Judy?"

In that moment, the room filled with laughter. Both knew that it had been a very long time since either one had laughed as hard as they did now. Even at what seemed to be their lowest point, they found a time to laugh.

"I love you, Carrots."

"I love you too, Nick."

Just then, a small knock came at the door.

"Come in!" Judy called nonchalantly.

Much to both her and Nick's surprise, it was Judy's parents, Bonnie and Stu Hopps, who entered the room.

"Mom! Dad! You weren't supposed to be here for another hour or so," Judy exclaimed as her parents descended upon her with hugs, kisses, and worried expressions.

"We didn't want to have to wait any longer than necessary. We practically threw the sitter at your little brothers and sisters!" Bonnie joked lightly.

"Now, Jude the Dude, what happened?" Stu inquired.

"We were attacked by polar bears," Nick chimed in cheerfully. "But we're fine now. Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Hopps!"

Judy's parents looked mortified. Judy shot a nasty look at a smirking Nick before turning back to her parents with a gentle voice. "Mom. Dad. We're fine, okay? There is no need to worry."

"You're hardly 'fine!' I mean, look at you, Judy!"

"Dad, honestly, everything is okay-"

"How did this even happen, Judy? I thought you were being safe!"

"These things happen, Mom. There's no telling what can happen from day to day-"

"Well, you're right about that! You should come home immediately!"

"What-? No! You're being unrealistic Dad-"

Just then, Nick and Judy's doctor, the stoutly female badger, entered the room with a small otter nurse by her side.

"Knock, knock. Mom, are we ready for our ultrasound?"

The room immediately went silent as those words filled the ears of all those present. Judy's mouth was agape as she looked at the doctor, who had become uncomfortably silent at the awkward reaction. Judy's parents were absolutely stunned, and frankly, speechless. The poor otter nurse who had been asked to assist the doctor that day stood shuffling her feet, embarrassed. It was Nick, of course, who broke the silence with his usual smirk-dosed voice.

"Well, _Mom_ , are we ready for our ultrasound?"


	5. Chapter 5

" _Babies_ , Judy? _Babies_? You are _not_ old enough for this! You aren't ready!"

"Mom, I'm perfectly ready, this wasn't unexpected-well, it was, but that's not the point-"

"This is a big decision, Judy!"

"I know, Mom-"

"Who is the father?" It was the first thing that Judy's father had said after the doctor's unexpected and badly timed arrival. This single question struck fear in both Nick and Judy's hearts, as they had no idea how to answer the question, and both let the room fall silent without a reply.

A few more awkward moments of silence had followed Nick's snarky comment after the doctor had arrived, before Nick eventually motioned to the doctor to continue as if nothing had happen, which she happily obliged. With that, the doctor began the ultrasound, and as soon as it had begun, Judy's mother had gone all in with every question and concern she could think of. In the end, it was Stu's first question that silenced the room once more, until the doctor interfered. "Everything looks good, Mom. Would you like to see?" Judy nodded, a small smile on her face. From across the room, Nick watched as the doctor readjusted the screen of the machine to allow Judy a better sight. He couldn't help but also smile as the doctor pointed out each of the four babies and the various little physical features among them. This was the first ultrasound of Judy's abdomen, and it was the first time both of them had seen their babies. "And that's Baby Number 3's left foot," the doctor concluded cheerfully.

It only took a minute or two for the doctor to readjust Judy back into a more comfortable position, pack up the equipment with the aid of the otter nurse, and exit the room, all while Judy thanked her and apologized for the weird situation. Judy's parents wheeled back around and immediately began bombarding Judy with questions as soon as the door to the room has closed with a quiet click. "How far along are you, Judy?"

"Ten weeks, but Mom-"

" _Ten weeks_? And you never even told us you were involved with someone!"

"I was going to tell you, but things got busy, Mom-"

"Oh, things are _always_ busy, Judy! That's why you have to make time for your family! Do we not matter anymore?"

"Of course you matter, Mom-!"

"When did you get married?" The second question out of Stu's mouth silenced the room just like the first had. Judy's face flushed a deep shade of red. "Well, the t-thing is, I'm not exactly m-married-"

" _Not married_! Judith Hopps, how could you be so _reckless_ and _irresponsible_ -?"

"Bonnie, calm down for just a moment now. Judy, who is the father?" There was the horrifying question again, but Judy knew it had to be answered sooner than later. "Okay, l-look, you can't get mad at me for this. He's v-very kind and- _Nick_!"

While stuttering out a reply to her parents, Judy had glanced over at Nick for support, only to find him _out_ of his hospital bed. He was limping horribly with his broken leg, using his bed and then the wall as support to balance his weight, and he was slightly bent over in pain from the surgery that had just taken place a little over four hours ago. Judy sat up in bed, immediately concerned and furious at the same time. "Nick, what on earth are you doing-?" Nick stopped her with a paw that he quietly placed to his lips in a hushing motion before turning to Bonnie and Stu Hopps. Despite the obvious pain he was in, Nick had a very friendly grin on his face. Limping the last few feet over to the couple, Nick used the end of Judy's bed to steady himself before holding out a paw for Judy's parents to shake. "Mr. and Mrs. Hopps, it's very good to see you again," Nick stated pleasantly as he shook both parents' hands. "We met once a very long time ago. My name is Nicholas Wilde - please call me Nick - and I am your daughter's partner at work. As you can see, Judy has a habit of getting us into some trouble," Nick chuckled as he gestured to his wounds. Judy's parents looked absolutely dumbfounded and concerned, but Nick continued on despite the daggers Judy's eyes were shooting at him. "I have known Judy for almost three years now. I have been friends with her for about two and half of those three years and I have dated her for about a year and a half of those three years, with some things overlapping, if you catch my drift. I understand that things are a little out of order here, but Judy and I _fully_ intend on getting married, and I will be sure to ask you for permission to marry Judy before I propose, of course, because I still respect your decision in all of this. No, we did not plan for four little fur balls to come rolling into our life, but we wouldn't have it any other way. That's kind of a funny story how that happened, actually-" Nick then decided to take the conversation in a different direction after a quick glance in Judy's direction. "But, anyway! Life is messy, but we are dealing with it, and right now, I would like to ask you to leave, because I need to call my mother and inform her of all of this, and I think Judy needs a little bit of a rest. She is very tired, and we do not want to stress her out anymore than necessary right now."

Nothing had prepared Judy or her parents for what Nick had said, but Judy still found herself smiling at his words. A fox who had just had surgery dragged himself from his bed, despite all of his pain, and had just kicked her parents out, all for her. Nick had honestly expected Judy's parents to yell at him for speaking to them in such a way, but much to his surprise, they simply smiled sweetly at him and began making their way from the room. It was Stu who turned and spoke before they left. "We're staying at a hotel a few blocks from here. We'll check in later tonight, if that's okay."

"That would be absolutely wonderful, Mr. Hopps."

"Please, Nick, call me Stu; you've earned it," Stu turned to leave, but looked back at Nick once more. "Oh, and son, I'm glad you are the father. I know you'll take good care of my daughter." Behind him, Bonnie nodded her agreement. Giving Nick a gentle but firm pat on the shoulders, Judy's parents left, shutting the door behind them. Nick then turned to Judy. "Wow, I'm going to be completely honest with you Carrots, I cannot believe that worked."

"Nick, are you crazy?"

"I know, I know, I shouldn't have been so rude, but-"

"No, you shouldn't be out of bed!" Nick chuckled at her reaction. "I just kicked your parents out, and you are more concerned about how _I'm_ feeling?"

"Get in bed!"

"I know, I know." Nick carefully made his way over to Judy's bed, where he carefully nudged his way in next to her. "Hi, Carrots," he whispered as he planted a kiss on her small nose, making her smile. "You should be in your own bed."

"Nah, this one is more comfy. Can I borrow your phone real quick?" Judy reached over to the small table next to her bed and handed him her cell phone, unlocking it before handing it over. Nick muttered a "thanks" before opening her dial pad and typing in a cell phone number. Putting the phone to his ear, he waited patiently for the other end of the line to be connected and answered. Judy watched and listened carefully. Finally, the receiver of the call answered the phone.

"Hi, Mom. How are you? … Good, that's good. I'm glad to hear it … Well, actually that's a funny story, Mom. Do you have a moment to talk? … Ha, I think the pie can wait, this is kind of important … No, no, I'm fine, but I do have to talk to you … You remember Judy, right? … I know you want to meet her, and you will soon, but we have to talk first … She's fine, Mom … No, I promise, just let me finish … I don't have an attitude! Mom, this is important!" Nick glanced over at Judy and rolled his eyes. Judy mouthed "be nice," which he stuck his tongue out at before continuing. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry, but please let me tell you this … Judy and I were in an accident-Mom, we _are_ fine! … I didn't lie to you, let me finish! … We were attacked by some polar bears while working last night and we are at the hospital right now … Honestly, it was pretty bad … A ruptured spleen, some broken ribs, a broken leg, and some scratches … Yeah, I'm going to be black and blue for a little while … She's okay, a broken arm and some scratches, though … Yes, I had surgery this morning for my spleen … Yes, I promise we're fine … Yes, you can come visit if you want, but I have to tell you something first … Judy is pregnant … She's about two months along … Of course I'm the father, Mom!" Judy let out a little audible gasp that she quickly stifled with a paw. Nick glanced over at her. "Why is it that everyone related to you thinks I'm cheating?" Judy whispered, clearly offended. Nick leaned in and kissed her forehead before mouthing something along the lines of "I love you" and "don't worry about it."

"Yeah, Mom … Uh-huh … It's four babies, not one… Ha, _I know, Mom_! " That's when a big smile came across Nick's face, and much to Judy's surprise, he was on the verge of tears. "I'm going to be a dad." Judy smiled and carefully wrapped her uninjured arm around Nick, holding him close as he finished the conversation. "I love you too, Mom … Okay, thank you … I'll tell her you said 'hello' … No, I won't tell her that … We'll see you soon… Goodbye." Nick ended the call and set Judy's phone down next to him on the bed. He then turned to look at Judy. "I'm going to be a dad."

"I'm going to be a mom."

"We are going to be parents." Nick had never been one to cry often, but he cried now.


	6. Chapter 6

"Oh, and their little feet were _so_ cute!"

"Baby feet are always adorable, Dear."

"I wish you had been here to see the ultrasound."

"Oh, trust me, Honey, I wish I had been here too. Isn't that right, Nicholas?" It was easy to see where Nick got his famous smirk, as the same smirk played across his mother's face easily when she threw the sarcastic remark towards her son. It was late in the evening now, and Nick and Judy had both just received more pain killers for their injuries. It was, of course, a simple "coincidence" when Nick's mother arrived just as the medicine went to work, making Judy feel better than ever. Arriving in a glorious finesse only she could pull off, Nick's mother had quickly kissed and hugged Nick in greeting, and had then turned to Judy with a large smile on her face. "There's my daughter-in-law!" she had sung. Within minutes, Judy _loved_ Nick's mother; she had even sat up in bed and completely readjusted so that Nick's mother could sit with her. As soon as Nick's mother had become comfortable, and after her and Judy became the best of friends, they sparked up a discussion that could easily be labeled as "the baby conversation of the century." With an internal groan, Nick sunk into his bed that he had returned to earlier, and tried to block out the force that was his mother. Now, Nick loved his mother, he really did, but when it came to things that made her happy… well, all hands on deck.

Judy's parents were going to arrive at about 7:30 that evening, which was still an hour away, and the fox and the bunny had already been talking for at least an hour and a half, so Nick was nothing but in for it at this point. Any chance that presented itself, Nick's mother would find a way to shoot a snide comment in Nick's direction, which Nick took with a spoonful of sugar. "Yes, Mom, that is absolutely right. I would have called, you see, if I hadn't been busy bleeding to death," Nick stated lazily. Judy rolled her eyes. "Nick: always the drama queen."

"Oh, don't I know it, Sugar," Nick's mother laughed.

To describe Nick's mother, she was the definition of beauty; always in some lovely modest sun dress that would no doubt fit her figure perfectly. Time had most definitely been kind to Mrs. Wilde, and she showed that off with elegance. From the way she carried herself, it was clear that Mrs. Wilde was an independent, big-hearted, sassy fox who wanted nothing more than to see her son be happy. To Mrs. Wilde, Judy was the definition of happiness, especially if that happiness was in her son's life. That evening, Nick's mother had not only showed up in a gorgeous purple dress that fell around her amazingly and a smile that could charm any daughter-in-law, but she had also shown up with baby books and some of Judy's favorite snacks. "These are for you, my Dear," she had said with a smile. "Nick told me you were a carrot farmer, so I assumed on some of these groceries, but I hope they help." And just like that, Judy was putty in Mrs. Wilde's paw. In all honesty, though, Nick was quite glad that his mother and Judy were getting along so well. It was clear that Mrs. Wilde approved of Judy not only being Nick's wife-to-be, but also the mother-to-be of his children and her grandchildren.

"So Judy, Honey, tell me how you and Nick met."

"We met through work."

"And you are a police officer too, correct?"

"Yes, I met Nick after he scammed me in an ice cream shop." The conversation was briefly interrupted by Nick's laughter. "The most romantic way to meet, I'm sure," he chuckled. "But seriously, Mom, I told you this already."

"Oh, I know," she stated with a wave of her paw. "But I like to hear the story, and besides, Judy could offer me a new perspective." Judy couldn't help but smile with a nod of agreement. Nick's mother then insisted she continue. "Well, he scammed me, so then I threatened to arrest him for tax evasion if he didn't help me out with this case that was really bugging me."

"The missing otter case, right?"

"Yes! Wow, Mrs. Wilde, you really do your homework."

"I do indeed, Dear, and let me just say that threatening tax evasion was such a genius move on your part."

"Thank you!" Nick rolled his eyes. "Just finish the story, Carrots."

"Nicholas, don't rush her! You take your sweet time, Dear." Another eye roll from Nick as Judy continued. "We started working on that case and became good friends. I eventually got Nick to become an officer and here we are," Judy smiled. "Oh, how I love that story!" Nick's mother grinned with a twinkle of love in her eyes. "Now, Nicholas, why am I just now getting the call that four sweet little grandchildren are on their way into my life?"

""Did you want me to call you right after we had sex?"

"Nick!" Judy gasped, her eyes glaring at him. Nick's mother was unfazed, however. "I would have liked to have found out when you found out."

"I find out on my birthday. If you had called, I would have told you."

"Someone's grumpy," Nick's mother smirked, which Nick smiled at. "I didn't call because you don't call me on my birthday."

"Mom, I don't even remember when your birthday is!"

"Then why should I remember yours?"

"Fair point," Nick stated with a painful shrug. Judy laughed as she watched the ordeal. Judy had always had parents who loved her much like Nick's mother loved him, but it was slightly different. Her parents had always been overprotective to the point that they didn't really want her to follow her dreams, while Nick's mother had always let Nick express his wild side. Now, she felt as if she had a second mother who would always allow her to make her own decisions, and that comforted Judy. She knew that she would be bringing four babies into a world where all they would experience was love and laughter, and that was what mattered.

A small knock came at the door before it opened to reveal Bonnie and Stu Hopps. "We aren't interrupting anything, are we?" Bonnie asked nervously. Mrs. Wilde jumped to her feet. "Not at all," she extended her paw. "I'm Nick's mother. It's very nice to meet the parents of this amazing young lady."

"Thank you, we are very proud of Jude the Dude," Stu replied, winking at Judy as he did so. Judy's parents had brought food for everyone, which they happily passed around. The night continued on in bliss as the two families ate and conversed. At one point, Judy caught Nick trying to get up out of his bed and crawl into hers again, so she stood and went to his bed. "Why did you get up?" he asked after she sat down. "My leg isn't broken and yours is. You have a screwed up spleen and I don't. I think I can afford to move. You, on the other hand, can't."

"It was that obvious I wanted to get up?" Nick chuckled before taking another bite of the burger Judy's parents had brought him. Judy smiled and nodded. "I know you get lonely over here." She leaned in and kissed his forehead, which he pretended to think was a disgusting action, resulting in Judy giggling. "They seem to be getting along," Nick stated as he gestured toward their parents, who were all seated at the small wooden table that was located in the corner of Nick and Judy's hospital room. All three seemed to be smiling, eating, and talking about various things. "Yes, they do," Judy agreed. "I like your mother."

"I figured you would. She's a real animal pleaser."

"And I think my parents have always liked you, but they are a little taken aback by everything right now."

"That's understandable."

"Really? You aren't mad?"

"Carrots, why would I be mad? They are your parents. Of course they are going to freak out and be worried and hate me for a little bit."

"They don't hate you."

"Even if they did, I wouldn't mind. Life is messy, right?" Judy smiled at the mention of one of their famous life mottos. "Life is messy," she agreed. "And besides, they brought me food, so I'm not complaining. Although, I prefer Griz's meals, ya know?"

"Ha, I do indeed. It's been a while since we've grabbed anything from the diner."

"We'll have to take the kids there one day. Griz would be ecstatic." Judy grinned at the thought of a massive grizzly bear being excited to see four small fox-bunny babies. She absent-mindedly placed a paw on her small baby bump, which Nick noticed, smiling as he did so. "So what's the plan for work, Carrots?"

"Well, I hate to say it, but I'm probably going to be released from the hospital long before you do."

"Ugh, I was hoping you wouldn't bring that up."

"It'll be okay, though."

"I don't like you working alone."

"I'll just be hanging around the offices. I'm not really up for any big cases after this whole ordeal."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Okay, then. Hopefully, I'll be out sooner than expected."

"It takes about six to ten weeks for a broken bone to heal, and we'll be able to leave long before that. The scratches and bruises will fade eventually. I'm just worried about your spleen and maybe your ribs." Nick waved a paw at her and dismissed her words. "Nah, I'm fine. I'm just a bit sore is all. What does the Chief think about all of this?"

"He thinks we are absolute idiots for going into that building without calling for backup, but he's glad that _all_ of us are okay."

"All of us? He really cared about the babies too?"

"He has a bigger heart than he lets on, you know."

"I'll believe it when he stops making me tense every time he walks into the same room."

"With those standards, you'll never believe it," Judy laughed. "Judy, Dear, come here and let me get a look at that growing tummy of yours!" Nick's mother called from across the room. "You better go before she comes over here and breaks my other ribs thinking I told you to ignore her," Nick snickered. With a sly smile and another kiss on Nick's forehead, Judy stood and made her way over to the table. Once there, she carefully lifted the hospital gown she was required to wear enough to show her abdomen. Although both her and Nick had to wear the gowns, they both had clothes on underneath, which they had had Finnick stop by to drop off earlier in the day, as he was the only other person with a key to the couple's apartment (for emergencies). Nick was wearing his boxers and a pair of dark green sweatpants under his gown. For Judy, it was her bra, panties, and a comfortable pair of light gray athletic shorts. When Judy lifted her gown, everyone got a good view of her abdomen that had swollen into a perfect tiny baby bump. For Nick, he also got a good view of Judy's amazing cottontail butt in athletic shorts, which he responded to with a sexual whistle that made Judy yell at him before laughing. Nick continued to stare at Judy's butt as his mother went on about how amazing she looked so far and how happy she was, while Judy's parents commented as well. That's when Nick saw it: a dark spot on Judy's shorts, just between her legs. Nick was out of bed in an instant, painfully limping his way over to Judy. Everyone looked up at him in surprise, Judy dropped her gown back down, and both she and Nick's mother were telling him to get back in bed. Careful of her broken arm, Nick looped an arm around Judy's waist and pulled her back over to the bed. She squealed as he gently tossed her in the bed and pulled the sheets up to her stomach. "Nick, what in God's name are you doing- _Nick_!" Judy's face flushed a deep shade of red as Nick put one of his paws under the sheets and down into her pants. Not saying a word, he removed his paw and held it up in the air, showing her. The tips of his paw were a shade darker than they usually were, and they were glistening as if they were wet. The color drained from Judy's face. "I-is that-?" Nick turned to his mother quickly, his eyes wide and his heart beating rapidly.

"Get a doctor. She's bleeding."


	7. Chapter 7

"It's okay, Judy. Judy, look at me, it's going to be okay." Nick firmly gripped Judy's unharmed paw with his bloody paw. His face was only centimeters from hers, both of their eyes wide with fear. Judy was practically shaking, her eyes filled with tears. "This is all my fault, Nick. I did this. I did something-"

"Judy, no, it's going to be okay, I promise. We are going to get through this, okay? Take a deep breath and relax-"

"I can't relax, Nick! What if something's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong."

"Something is clearly wrong!" Judy squeezed Nick's paw tightly, holding it close to her chest. Nick's mother was gone, probably running and calling out for help. The door was open, and Nick could hear the commotion she was starting outside, but he wasn't focused on that right now. Judy's parents were on the other side of the bed; Bonnie was gently stroking Judy's ear, while Stu rested his paws on Bonnie's shoulders reassuringly. Both had grave looks on their faces, but said nothing, letting Nick do all of the talking. "Nick, I'm scared," Judy whispered, tears escaping her eyes now. Nick's voice caught in his throat, completely unsure of how to respond. Instead, he quickly turned and looked back at the door. "Somebody get a damn doctor!" he hollered into the hallway before looking back at Judy. "Don't be scared. It's going to be okay. Here," Nick briefly lifted up the sheets covering Judy and glanced under her hospital gown. The sight that met him made him quickly drop the sheets. "What? What is it?" Judy asked quickly. "Don't worry, the doctor is on the way." Just then, Judy and Nick's doctor came running in with a team of nurses. Nick backed up, letting the doctor work, but he kept his paw intertwined with Judy's. "Okay, let's get her up to surgery. Quickly, now!" In an instant, Judy and Nick's paws were separated as her bed was quickly wheeled out of the room and up to one of the operating rooms on the floor above. Nick stood and watched, his breathing shallow and rapid. When he had looked under those sheets, all he had seen was blood, and for all he knew, that could have been the last time he would ever see her again.

"Let's get you into bed, sir," a kind antelope nurse stated to Nick, trying to lead him to the bed. "Is she going to be okay?"

"We're doing everything we can."

"I don't want to lie down."

"I understand, sir, but it is the best thing for you right now. It wouldn't help her if you injured yourself more." Not wanting to cause trouble, Nick did as he was told and slid back under the sheets of his stiff hospital bed. At this point, Nick's mother had reentered the room and was by Nick's side, trying to comfort him. "Mom, what if something happens to her? Or the babies? I couldn't live with myself if I lost even one of them."

"It's not going to come to that. Judy is a strong rabbit; no matter what this is, she'll make it out with those babies in perfect health." Nick ran a paw over his face. He could feel that weird sensation that something wasn't right building up in his chest again, and he didn't like it. Last time he felt this way, both he and Judy ended up in the hospital due to a bunch of violent polar bears.

Judy's mother, Bonnie, was crying now. She was sitting at the little wooden table in the corner, her paws covering her face. Stu stood over her with a pained expression, his paws still resting on her shoulders. Nick knew that they were worried, scared, and overall upset, but he couldn't help but feel slightly angry at them. After all, they hadn't even been there for Judy in the last few years. " _Stop that, they're her parents. They could disown her and kick her out, and then cry when she was hurt and that would still be okay_ ," Nick thought. Shaking these thoughts from his head, Nick attempted to think of the reasons why Judy would start bleeding so heavily for no apparent reason, but came up with nothing except the event with the polar bears.

Minutes, then hours passed by, but still no news of Judy's condition. Nick's mother paced about, Judy's mother cried until she couldn't anymore, Judy's father never said a word, and Nick remained in bed, trying to calm himself down. It was 1:00 in the morning before anything happened. When the doctor opened the door to the room, everyone immediately looked up with expectantly hungry eyes.

"It was the placenta, more specifically placenta praevia, which means that the placenta was too low down on the uterine wall. It's rare, but not necessarily uncommon in the early stages of pregnancy. Fortunately, we were able to stop the bleeding and readjust things, but she's going to need some serious bed rest over the course of the next few weeks. We'll do an ultrasound in the morning in order to check to see if everything is still running smoothly, and we'll check up on her a few times overnight, but she's going to be just fine. We'll bring her down in just a minute."

"Oh, thank God." Nick would have collapsed if he weren't already situated in a bed. The feeling in his chest subsided, but he still felt very concerned, even if Judy was going to be okay. Judy's parents let out heavy sighs of relief, Bonnie's being more of a sob than a sigh, and Nick's mother embraced Nick tightly. "I told you she was going to be okay," she whispered to him before releasing him and going over to comfort Judy's parents.

When they wheeled Judy's bed back into the room, she was sound asleep. Nick couldn't help but think her adorable while she slept, even at a time like this. Judy's parents smothered her in gentle kisses as soon as the nurses and doctors left the room. Bonnie was crying once again. After a few minutes, Nick's mother spoke up. "Mr. and Mrs. Hopps, you should go home and rest for the night. Judy won't be awake for hours, and if anything happens, I'll be sure to contact you immediately. I live on the other side of town, so I'll stay here tonight." Both parents looked a little hesitant to leave, but it was Stu who finally decided that waiting around becoming more sleep deprived wasn't going to do anyone any good. "Thank you, that is very kind of you," he replied, slowly pulling his wife away from Judy so she wouldn't suffocate her with affection. "We will be back first thing in the morning," Bonnie said as she hugged both Nick and his mother goodbye. With that, the two went back to their hotel to gain some well deserved rest.

Once they were gone, Nick's mother came and sat on the small pull-out couch that rested against the wall next to Nick's bed. "Does this sort of thing, uh, happen often, Nicholas?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know, something bad happens, and then something else bad happens. Does that happen often?" Nick laughed and nodded. "It does."

"Well, I blame you."

"I expected nothing less."

"You should keep her from danger."

"I couldn't exactly stop her placenta from bleeding, Mom."

"Oh, you know what I mean!"

"I do, and I try to keep her from danger as often as I can, but she's a bit of a wild card, you know?"

"I would know if you called me more often."

"Mom, I talk to you almost every day!"

"I would like if that 'almost' was a definite thing, Nicholas! And now that I have four grandchildren, I want pictures and videos."

"Of what?" Nick laughed. The conversations he and his mother had always included her criticizing him and then demanding something. "Of your babies, Nicholas! I wanna see their first steps, their first words, and don't think I don't want to be there for every holiday, birthday, and half birthday!"

"Half birthday? Now you're just making excuses to see me."

"Seeing me more wouldn't kill you."

"I'm already in a hospital, aren't I?"

"Oh, hush!" Nick's mother picked up a pillow off of the couch and threw it in Nick's direction, making them both laugh. "So when are you going to marry this girl?"

"I have no idea. I don't want to make her marry me while she's pregnant, because I want her to be comfortable and happy on the day of the wedding, which a pregnancy can interfere with. Plus, we are going to be pretty banged up for a while, which I don't need in my wedding pictures."

"So why not marry her after the babies are born?"

"I guess we could do that."

"Ooooh the little boys would look so handsome in their little tuxedoes!"

"How do you know we aren't having four girls?"

"Honey, I'd bet money that you're going to have at least one little boy, and I bet he'll be quite the trouble maker, just like you."

"Nah, if I had to bet, I'd say he would end up just like Judy." Nick's mother laughed. "That wouldn't a bad thing at all," she said with a big smile, glancing over at Judy lovingly. "You really like her, don't you, Mom?"

"Much more than that last skank you dated." Nick's eyes widened as he let out a hoot of laughter. "Ouch! Okay, okay, I deserve that. She was a bit crazy."

"'She was a bit crazy' is a huge understatement when comparing her to Judy." Nick glanced over at his sleeping life mate, who was curled up into a small ball of fur, her large floppy ears nearly covering her face. "She's the one, Mom."

"She better be the one! She's got my grandchildren in her! I'll let you know right now, if you leave her, I'm disowning you and adopting her." At this, Nick roared with laughter, despite the agonizing ache that emanated from his broken ribs.

Once his laughter had subsided, his mother shook her head and smiled. "Your father would have been so proud."

"You really think so?"

"I know so, Nicholas. He would have loved Judy. He would have killed you for getting her pregnant without marrying her first, though."

"Ha, that was Dad for ya."

"But he would have been very proud of you."

"Thanks, Mom."


	8. Chapter 8

"Oh, no, Mrs. Wilde, I'm perfectly capable of walking-"

"My Dear, you'll never get better with that attitude! Now, have a seat."

"Really, I insist that I walk-"

"And I insist that you sit."

"Mrs. Wilde-"

" _Sit_."

"Yes, ma'am."

Feeling like a child, Judy sat in the wheelchair that Nick's mother had made such a fuss over obtaining. On Judy's bed sat all of their items, as well as all of the gifts the couple had been brought during their recovery, packed in several different bags in various sizes. It was nearly noon, and Nick was currently at the reception desk, signing all of the needed forms to complete the process of checking them out of the hospital. After spending nine and a half days in the hospital, the couple was more than happy to be going home. After Judy's bleeding scare, the couple had recovered nicely and had been lucky enough to leave within a span of two weeks. Within the time of their stay, Judy and Nick had endured a few physical therapy sessions to work out their stiff limbs, several different visitors for hours at a time, Nick's mother, several nurses and doctors always asking the same questions, and a few really crappy hospital meals. When they had finally received the news that they were free to go home, they had been more than relieved. Judy had packed the majority of their things, while Nick had bothered her the entire time. When it finally came time to leave, Nick's mother had demanded that Judy be placed in a wheelchair on the journey from their hospital room to their SUV that had been brought and left in the hospital's parking lot by another ZPD officer days before. Although Judy was perfectly capable of walking, she allowed Mrs. Wilde to baby her. Judy's parents had left the day after her surgery, as the sitter was really struggling with the mass of her siblings, so it was Nick's mother who played the parent game for both her and Nick, which she was more than grateful for.

"Mom, she can walk." Judy looked up and smiled at the sight of Nick, who was standing in the doorway. He was on crutches now due to his broken leg, and his nearly healed ribs still ached slightly, but the incision from his surgery and the bruises were nearly gone, making him look like the same old Nick Wilde she knew. She remembered dressing him that morning when they were finally able to remove the prison uniforms they had come to know as hospital gowns. Both had been very slow in dressing, as they were still sore and stiff in several different areas, but they had accomplished it. Nick hadn't been able to button up his famous green Hawaiian shirt, for with his broken leg, he couldn't stay balanced long enough to button the shirt up all the way, and since it was too painful to sit down and then stand back up, Judy came to the rescue. "Those are looking better," she had said as she noticed the healing gashes that covered his upper body as she buttoned the shirt with her good paw. The bandages had been removed from a few of the gashes on both of their bodies, but not on some of the worse ones. It was apparent that they both would have some pretty nasty scars for a very long time, but Nick said they were "sexy," so Judy didn't complain.

"I know she can walk. I'm not blind, Nicholas."

"Then let her get up from the chair."

"Nicholas, how insensitive are you that you'd make your pregnant life mate walk when she doesn't have to?"

"She's only eleven weeks pregnant, Mom."

"Almost twelve!" Judy chimed in with a smile. Nick looked down at her and grinned. "Hey, Carrots."

"Hi, Nick."

"How ya feeling?"

"Great! You?"

"Better now that I've seen you. Come on, let's go home."

With everyone carrying a bag of belongings, Mrs. Wilde wheeled Judy out of the hospital, while Nick limped along on his crutches. "I missed our car," Judy commented once they arrived to their large black ZPD SUV. "Me too," Nick agreed as he took the bag Judy was holding and threw it into the back seat. Once everything was packed into the back, Nick tossed the car keys to Judy. "You're driving, my leg's broken."

"Nicholas, I am perfectly able to drive you two home."

"I know Mom, but you won't."

"Why not?"

"Two reasons: First, it's Judy's left arm that is broken, and she's right pawed. She can manage driving with one paw; I've seen her drive with her feet before, so I know she can do it. Second, I don't want you driving my car."

"Uh, it's _my_ car, Nick," Judy stated with raised eyebrows. Nick rolled his eyes before he wheeled Judy over to the driver's side of the car. After opening the car door and leaning his crutches against the car, Nick swept Judy up into his arms and placed her in the driver's seat. Grudgingly, Nick's mother agreed that Judy could drive, but only if she could follow them to their home and help them get settled. "Agreed!" Judy shouted from her seat before Nick could object. With a smirk that read "I won," Mrs. Wilde kissed her scowling son on the cheek and gave Judy a big hug. The couple waited for her to get into her car before Judy started the SUV and began the drive home. "Carrots, let's get these jams rolling," Nick stated as he turned on the radio to one of their favorite stations. "It's been so long since we've been home, or to work. I'm excited to be out of the hospital, Judy smiled. "You know you are staying home, right?"

"I'm going back to work, Nick."

"Nuh-uh, Carrots. You're staying home for a few more days."

"Nice try, but I already talked to the Chief, I'm back to work with you first thing tomorrow morning."

" _Tomorrow_? Isn't that a bit soon?" Judy threw a curious glance in Nick's direction. "If I could, I'd be on my way to work right now."

"I believe it. Tomorrow morning it is."

A few minutes later, they were pulling into the parking lot that sat in front of the apartment building they lived in. Judy hopped out of the car and helped guide Nick from his seat before they began unloading their bags. Nick's mother was more than happy to carry things, and before too long, the three were standing in front of Judy and Nick's apartment. Nick pulled out his key and put it into the lock, opening the door. "Home sweet home!" Judy cheered as she flicked on the lights. Surfaces were covered in a thin layer of dust, but otherwise, their apartment was the same old same old: one bedroom, one bathroom, a combined kitchen and living room, and one hallway to connect it all together. Taking a look around, a thought entered Judy's mind. Nick was arguing with his mother about where to put their packed items when he noticed a peculiar look on Judy's face. "Carrots? You okay?"

"It's too small."

"What's too small?"

"The apartment." At her words, Nick looked around and saw what she saw. The apartment was no longer a large place that the two of them shared; it was now a small area of space that would never fit six animals. "Oh," Nick sighed. "We'll just have to go home hunting then," Nick's mother laughed, making Judy smile again. "We can start looking after you two start work again. Now, where does this bag go?"

Nick's mother helped them unpack all of their belongings, all while commenting on the apartment or some other aspect of the couple's life. She also managed to throw a few choice comments at Nick, who could rebuttal them easily. It wasn't until late evening that she left, kissing and hugging the two before her exit. "Call me if you need anything, Judy!"

"I will! Thank you, Mrs. Wilde," Judy smiled as she closed the door behind the elegant fox. With a sigh, Judy then turned to Nick. "We're home," she laughed quietly as she rested her back against the closed door. "And finally alone," Nick muttered with a roll of his eyes. "Oh, stop. Your mother is wonderful."

"I know, I know. Quit lecturing me."

"Ha, am I becoming the new Mrs. Wilde?" Nick stood up from his spot on the couch and made his way over to Judy, limping slowly without his crutches. Coming into her personal space, he rested a paw beside her head on the door. "In that way, no… but in another way, yes."

"What does that mean?"

"I just mean that before too long, you really will be taking the title of Mrs. Wilde." A large grin broke out on Judy's face. She gave Nick a quick kiss on the cheek. "I'm glad to hear that."

"You act like I wasn't going to eventually ask."

"To be honest, I was pretty worried, so I started thinking 'what's a way I can get him to ask me to marry him?' and then I thought 'well, duh! Get pregnant!'" Nick couldn't help but laugh, watching the bunny's facial expressions as she made her joke. "I love when you smile," he commented. "Thank you, I picked this smile out myself."

"Alright, Mrs. Wilde, I see you're in a good mood. How about we take this to the bedroom?"

"You know we are both too sore for that."

"Yes, but I bet I can still make you scream."

" _Nick_!" Judy's face flushed a deep shade of red at the naughty comment, making Nick laugh. "That was horrible, but I do have to admit that you are looking very handsome with those bruises almost healed."

"What, you like my battle scars, Rabbit?"

"I have to say I do."

"Well then come on." Nick extended his left arm for Judy to take hold of with her right. "Oh, how gentlemen like."

"You know me, all gentlemen." Judy giggled as she looped her arm through his. Together, the two made their way down the hallway and into their bedroom, where the door shut with a satisfying click.


	9. Chapter 9

"Today is the _best_ day of my life!"

"Carrots! Keeps your paws on the wheel before you kill us!"

"Oops, sorry." Judy quickly placed her paws back on the wheel after having them in the air due to excitement. It was just a little past 6:00 in the morning; the two were on their way to work and Judy was absolutely ecstatic for a number of reasons. "Today is our first day back and the first day of my twelfth week. Do you know what that means?"

"You're going to be talking all day?"

"Yes! No-I mean, stop that! I meant that I'm almost through my first trimester. Just a few more days and one-third of my pregnancy is over!"

"Whoopee."

"I'm just _so_ excited."

"Really? I couldn't tell."

"You know what, Grumpy? I'm going to let that one slide."

"That's new."

"How about we get some coffee?"

"From our favorite coffee shop?"

"Of course."

"Yes! Love you, Carrots!"

"Ha, whatever." Judy had barely put the SUV in park before she jumped out of her seat. She then practically dragged Nick from the car, who wasn't objecting, as a good cup of coffee always convinced him. Once inside, Nick ordered two medium coffees (Judy wasn't allowed to order coffee anymore due to the fact that she couldn't handle so much power) and the two sat at their favorite booth in the very back of the café. Their shift didn't start for another hour, but Judy was a serious morning animal, and the two loved to sit and talk in the café when time allowed them to. "How are you feeling?"

"Really great! Almost all of my symptoms have stopped for the time being."

"They honestly weren't that bad to begin with."

"I know! Isn't that just _amazing_?"

"Did you slip something in your coffee when I wasn't looking? Or did you arrange this setup where when I order you a medium coffee, they actually give you something way stronger?"

"I'm just _really_ excited for today." Nick smirked at the jittery bunny and although it seemed impossible, he couldn't help but love her even more. A quick glance down at her abdomen reminded him of just how amazing Judy really was. "You're getting pretty big, Carrots."

"I'm not fat, Nick!"

"I didn't say you were fat." So far, Judy had gained about five pounds, and her baby bump showed no matter what outfit she wore now, and as far as Nick could tell, almost all of her symptoms had stopped. She was still moody at times and definitely craved weird things like pickles now and then, but everything else had stopped. She had been nearly symptom-free for almost three days. The fact that Judy was almost done with her first trimester worried Nick immensely for several reasons. He, of course, didn't like her working, no matter how pregnant she was, and he was starting to feel the pressures of becoming a father. In just six months, he would be legally and morally bound to four fox-bunny babies, and that was beginning to weigh on him. How could he be a father? He had never been responsible in his life…

"You ready to go? Nick?"

"Huh?"

"I asked if you were ready to go."

"Uh, yeah. Let's go."

"You okay? You seem kind of out of it."

"I'm fine. Let's go." Slightly concerned, Judy stood and followed Nick back to the SUV, their coffees in hand. They were still going to be pretty early to work, but neither one of them really cared; no one was going to punish two officers for caring about their work to the point that they showed up early. Moments later, Judy seemed to forget all about Nick's weird behavior when they pulled into the ZPD parking lot. "I'm kinda nervous," Judy chuckled as she put the car in park. "It's been so long."

"Got cold feet, Carrots?"

"Ha, you wish!" Nick jumped out of the car, walked over to Judy's side, and helped her out. Paw in paw, the two began making their way along the sidewalk to the entrance. "Your tie is crooked, Nick." Nick was wearing his police uniform, but unfortunately, Judy didn't fit into hers anymore. This was a revelation that had occurred to her that morning when she couldn't button her pants, keep her shirt all the way down, or close her vest. Judy had cried, actually, and Nick had been forced to convince her that she didn't need a uniform to enjoy her first day back to work. Minutes later, Judy was chipper as ever, stating that it was "the _best_ day" of her life. Oh, the joy of mood swings. Once at work, Judy was planning to talk to the Chief about handling the problem, but for the time being, she wore black leggings and a somewhat large purple shirt.

Nick adjusted his tie just as the two pushed through the glass doors, where a shriek met their ears with a deafening shock. "JUDY!"

"Hi, Clawhauser!" Judy giggled as she dragged Nick over to the large cheetah, who was seated at the reception desk as usual. Nick rolled his eyes. "'Hello' to you too, Big Guy."

"Oh, Nick, hi! Judy, come here and give me a hug!" Grinning as she did so, Judy let Clawhauser sweep her into an enormous embrace that took her feet off of the ground. Nick felt slightly uncomfortable as he watched the action, but remained silent as the two caught up with one another. "Ha, watch the baby bump, Clawhauser. You're going to crush me!"

"Oops, sorry!" Clawhauser let Judy down gently before offering her a donut out of a box that was nearly empty. "I just got these this morning. Here, have one." All of a sudden, something inside Nick put him on edge. If asked, he would never be able to explain it, but it was the same feeling that he had before the polar bear incident, that feeling he had when Judy's placenta had started bleeding, that feeling he had when he thought about being a dad, and that feeling he had when Clawhauser had hugged Judy just a moment before. It was like a balloon in his chest that filled with air unexpectedly; a sign that seemed to say "something is getting ready to happen." He couldn't tell if the feeling was bad or good, but he didn't like it at all. Just then, Judy gave the donut being offered one look and immediately held a facial expression that seemed absolutely disgusted. That feeling still haunting him, Nick took one look at Judy's face and without thinking, snatched up the trashcan sitting just behind the reception desk and held it out just in time for her to vomit in it. "Morning sickness is back. Sorry, Clawhauser, I don't think she's hungry," Nick shrugged as he rubbed Judy's back. Glancing down at Judy, who was still retching in the trashcan, Clawhauser looked guilty, as if he had done something wrong or as if he could do more to help, but he nodded knowing it was just her pregnancy. Still holding the trashcan for her, Nick waved a farewell to the cheetah, who was still standing awkwardly with the box of donuts, and led Judy to the bathrooms. It was at least ten more minutes before Judy was able to pull herself together enough to speak. "Well, that sucked," she gasped. Nick couldn't help but chuckle. "You're the one who jinxed it with all that "today is the _best_ day of my life" crap." Judy fought against her gag reflex and won before replying. "I don't sound like that."

"If you really think that, then you're in for a shock." Nick felt the familiar feeling of Judy punching his shoulder, but this time, she didn't put too much energy into it. "How did you know I was going to get sick?"

"I didn't."

"But you had the trashcan."

"Oh, well, I just had a weird feeling and then I grabbed it." Judy shrugged and recomposed herself. "We have to go talk to the Chief."

"Hold on there, Sicky, go wash your mouth out first." After Judy cleaned herself up, the two made it up to the second level of the ZPD and knocked on the Chief's office door. "Come in," came the Chief's gruff voice. "Well if it isn't Miss ICanDoWhateverIWant and her boyfriend, Mister ICan'tStopHer!" the Chief began after he had taken his usual stance behind his desk, hooves resting on the wood. Nick was slouched in an office chair, and Judy was standing with her paws behind her back. "Hi, Chief. We were just-"

"Where's your uniform, Hopps?"

"I, uh-well, it doesn't fit."

"Excuse me?"

"She's too fat for her clothes," Nick interjected. Judy fixed him with a dirty stare before turning back to the Chief and hesitantly shrugging her agreement. "Wonderful," the Chief muttered. "We'll get you a new one. Now, Hopps: you're taking calls. Wilde: In the field today; I've got a case for you."

" _What_?" It was Nick who reacted first as he jumped to his feet. Judy had a shocked look on her face, and had gone completely silent, but Nick continued. "What did you just say?"

"You heard me," the Chief barked. "Chief, you can't separate us," Nick argued. "We're partners." That balloon in his chest was filling with air at a rapid pace as he felt his anger rising. "Not anymore." This time, it was Judy who countered first. "You're splitting us up?" She looked close to tears. To her, this was the end of the world. Nick had been her partner for years, and when they finally took a large step in their relationship, everything else fell apart. "Just for the time being. It's not permanent, Hopps. The way I see it, you aren't capable of working in the field in your current condition. Nick is. No use in making a perfectly capable officer sit around."

"I should be with her, she needs me right now."

"She doesn't need you to take calls and staple papers, Wilde!"

"I'm not leaving her alone, Chief."

"This is not up to you! You saw what she did with the last case!"

"In all fairness," Judy interrupted. "I made a perfectly normal decision."

"Normal? You were almost killed, Carrots!"

"But did you die, though?" Nick's eyes were wide and his paws were in the air; a stance that read "are you kidding me?" Judy quickly moved on. "What about Nick?" she said, now focused back on the Chief "He can't be in the field alone."

"He won't be." Nick's interest perked as he also turned back to the Chief. "You're assigning me a new partner."

"Yes."

"Wait, so who's my partner?"

"Her." The Chief gestured toward the office door that had been left ajar. Standing in the doorway was a female red fox dressed in a police uniform that flattered her gorgeous figure. Her eyes were sharp, a light blue filling her irises. She was casually leaning against the doorframe, a smirk on her face. It was clear that she had been there for a while, listening to the whole discussion. Judy felt her jaw clamp shut as she noticed Nick's expression, which was that of pure interest. "Valerie."

"Nick." Her voice sounded like pure silk, with no strong accent or any other unique attention-catcher. Judy's jaw unclamped and dropped open at Nick's acknowledgment of the fox. "Nick, who is she?" Nick turned and caught the fiery look that was building up in Judy's eyes. The look struck fear in his heart. He barely had a chance to even think about answering before Valerie spoke, her words practically shaking the earth beneath Judy's feet.

"I'm his ex-girlfriend."


	10. Chapter 10

"Nicky, what's the problem?" Valerie was still elegantly draped around the door frame, her voice calling out crisp and clear as if every sentence was a line in a play. "Did she just call you ' _Nicky_ '?" Judy hissed. Nick was standing right in front of her, his back to Valerie, trying to keep Judy's attention on him. This plan, however, was failing miserably. "I didn't hear a thing."

"Nick, Honey, come on!" her voice rang out once more. "I'm going to _kill_ you, Nick." Judy muttered. "Okay, can we have a moment, please?" In very few strides, Nick crossed the room and shut the door, locking Valerie out of the Chief's office before turning around to face a very angry bunny. "Who the hell is she?" Nick looked up at the Chief. "Of all the mammals in the precinct, why her?" The Chief just shrugged, not really concerned with the question. "Uh, hello, Nick? _Your pregnant wife-to-be_ asked you a question!"

"Why her, Chief?" Nick pleaded miserably. " _Nick_!"

"Okay, okay! She's just an ex of mine-"

"' _Just an ex_ '? She seems like a little bit more than 'just an ex' to me!"

"She's just a little bit flirty, that's all-"

"And that doesn't worry you in the slightest?"

"No, because-"

" _Unbelievable_!"

"Could you keep your voice down? She's right outside!"

"Oh, I'm sorry that I'm such an _inconvenience_ , Nick. Let me just go and take calls with my pregnant self while you go run around solving cases with your ex!"

"Why did you just say 'solving cases' in such a sexual manner?"

"So you are thinking about sex!"

"Carrots, it's not like that-" Judy turned quickly to the Chief, her ears flopping as she did so. "Chief, how long are they partners for?" The Chief looked slightly nervous and uncomfortable, even afraid of Judy in that moment, but he answered anyway. "Until you, uh, return from your maternity leave."

"Oh, _wonderful_! You hear that, Nick? You get to screw her for the next six months and then the two and half months after that!"

"I'm not going to screw her-"

"In the meantime, I'll be staying with your mother."

"Oh God, please don't bring her into this."

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about Valerie."

"You are hitting below the belt on purpose, and honestly, I am appalled."

"I don't think this is funny, Nick!"

"I've never been more serious in my life."

"I am emotional and so _not_ in the mood to deal with this!"

"Okay, I hear you-" A soft knock, followed by Valerie entering the room, interrupted their argument. "Sorry, I don't mean to intrude, but-"

"Val, can we please just have a minute?" Oh no. Nick froze. He felt Judy's anger radiating off of her from where he was standing before she even so much as made a sound. Feeling the tension in the room, Valerie made an exaggerated expression and then closed the door, leaving Nick to face Judy once again. What he found was not pretty. "'Val?' _'Val_?' ARE YOU KIDDING ME, NICK?"

"That was a slip up-"

"Is that how you're going to explain it when you screw her?"

"Well," Nick chuckled. "It wouldn't be too hard to slip into _that_ , if you know what I mean. Am I right, Chief?" The Chief shook his head and gestured for Nick to be quiet, but it was too late; the damage had been done. "I'm going to actually _kill_ you!" The Chief coughed nervously. "That's technically, uh, murder-" Judy turned her deadly gaze upon the ox. " _Get out_!" she hissed as she pointed at the door. "This is my office, Hopps! I will not be spoken to like that-"

" _Get! Out!_ " The Chief winced slightly and then sulked out of the room without another word. Judy didn't even have time to feel guilty before she was on Nick once again. This time, she walked toward him, making him quickly back against the wall in fear. "Carrots, be rational now!"

"Oh, it's always 'Carrots this' and 'Carrots that!' I'm sick of you acting like I'm special when I'm clearly not!" Judy gestured at the closed door. "This was supposed to be a great day and you had to go and ruin it!"

"I didn't know she was going to show up!"

"You've never even mentioned her, Nick!"

"You've never mentioned any of your previous boyfriends!"

"That's because you're the first, you idiot!"

"I-wait, really? I am-"

"I can't believe you!"

"I think-"

"I don't care what you think!"

"Okay, _but_ I think that you're just being emotional-"

"Of course I'm being emotional, Nick, it's called being pregnant!"

"Okay, so you know that you aren't really thinking this through right now, so I suggest we just sit down," Nick carefully led Judy to the chair he had been reclining in just moments before. "And relax." He then carefully began to massage Judy's shoulders. "See? All better."

"I'm still mad-"

"Shhh! Just relax." Nick continued to work the knots from Judy's shoulders for a few more minutes, letting her cool off. "Chief, you can come back in," he called once he was sure that Judy wouldn't murder him at the earliest convenience. The Chief and Valerie peered into the room carefully before entering. Once they had established that they were safe, the Chief went back to his desk, while Valerie remained by the door. "Chief, I'm going to take Judy to my mother's house, and then I will be right back. She'll be back tomorrow, but she just needs some time."

"Be timely, Nicky, we do have a case." At Valerie's voice, Nick felt Judy tense, and heard the sound of disgust she made. Rubbing her shoulders a little harder now, Nick only nodded in reply before turning back to the Chief. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

"Fine, Wilde, but be quick about it."

"Will do, Chief." Nick carefully helped Judy out of the chair and began leading her from the room. Valerie opened her mouth to speak, but Nick caught her attention and mouthed "not a word," making her bite her tongue. Judy glared at Valerie hatefully, which Nick noticed, so he quickly grabbed her by the shoulders and steered her from the room.

"Hey, Judy-!"

"Now is really not the time, Clawhauser, she's like a ticking bomb!" Nick yelled back at the cheetah as he raced past, still steering Judy by her shoulders. "Bomb" was a very accurate statement, because as soon as Nick had gotten Judy into the passenger's seat of their SUV and began driving her to his mom's house, she had started yelling again. "'Be timely, _Nicky_ '! Oh, that stupid bit-"

"O-okay! Guess where we're going, Carrots?"

"To see your mother so I can borrow one of her kitchen knives."

"Funny, but no! We are visiting Grandma Wilde, isn't that right, babies?" Nick cooed lovingly in the direction of Judy's abdomen. "Don't talk to my children, Nick."

"Mom is going to be _so_ happy to see you."

"You're sleeping on the couch."

" _So_ happy."

The rest of the car trip was filled with unbelievably uncomfortable dead silence as Nick continued to drive, every now and then glancing to see if Judy was about to strangle him, while Judy stared angrily out of the window with her arms crossed tightly across her chest. After about a ten minute drive, Nick brought the car to a gentle stop in front of a small house that was painted a luminous light green. The door and the shutters of the house were painted a bright white, and the yard was made up of a luscious lawn that held several different thriving gardens. The entire area looked very cozy and inviting, but Judy was too upset to really enjoy it all. "Here we are," Nick chuckled nervously. He moved to get out and open Judy's car door for her, but stopped when he heard her door open. Without a word or a glance, Judy got out of the car, slamming the door behind her as she did so, and walked up to the front door. Nick watched her angrily saunter up the sidewalk to the wooden front porch. "Oh, this may have been a horrible idea."

Judy knocked on the door and put on her brightest smile, knowing that Nick's mother would love her no matter what. Nick's mother answered just a few seconds later. She was wearing a light blue dress that was covered by a kiwi green apron with white fringes. Judy could smell what she thought was cookies being baked, and could see a very wonderful home just from the limited view she had of the front hall. Mrs. Wilde smiled happily at the sight of Judy, but she also looked concerned. "Judy! What a surprise!"

"Hello, Mrs. Wilde. I hate to intrude, but may I come in?"

"Of course, is something wrong?" Judy hesitated slightly. "Mrs. Wilde, do you know Valerie by chance?" At the name, realization struck Nick's mother. She gave Judy a look that said "no way," which Judy answered with an stiff, angry nod. Nick's mother then glanced up at Nick, who was cautiously waiting in the SUV to see if anything major happened. Nick waved with a shy smile, something his mother did not return. "That skank," she finally whispered. "Honestly, you could be talking about either one of them and that would still apply," Judy stated haughtily. Nick rolled down the window of the passenger's seat and then hollered out to his mother. "Is it okay if she stays with you for the day?" Judy turned and looked at Nick, who waved and smiled at her. "Love you, Carrots!"

"You're still sleeping on the couch!" Nick gave a fake laugh. "Always the jokester, isn't she, Mom?"

"Really, Nicholas?"

"What?" Nick's mother just shook her head in disapproval before turning back to Judy.

"Come on in, Honey, and tell me all about it."


	11. Chapter 11

"He didn't!"

"Oh, he so did. Right in front of me too! ' _Val_ ,' as if I'm not right there next to him!"

"He used to call her that all the time. I hated it, I much prefer Carrots over Val, if I do say so myself."

"I know! My nickname is way better than hers!"

"So she works at the ZPD?"

"Apparently! I've never even seen her around before, and then when things are finally going well, she's there! Besides, she hasn't been there long, because Nick was the first fox officer and he's been there for two years."

"She used to be a con artist, just like him."

"Really?"

"With looks like that, of course! They were partners before Nicholas met that little fennec fox."

"Finnick."

"That's the one. Finnick hated her. She was always all over the place and could never really be trusted."

"I can believe that."

"I was never really involved in Nicholas's scamming ways, but I knew that she was trouble. It ended badly between them, but I have no idea why. I suspect it had to do with her pulling a fast one over on him."

"Nick seemed almost _amused_ to see her."

"I'm sure, it's been a very long time since he's seen her, and you know him, he never does or says the right thing."

"What should I do? Should I do something?"

"Judy, Honey, you need to relax. You're getting into your second trimester and you need to be careful. I know this is hard, but I trust that Nicholas will not be completely stupid in this situation." Judy sighed and idly played with the spoon that rested in her coffee cup. She and Nick's mother were comfortably seated on cushioned stools that rested around a kitchen island. Mrs. Wilde still lived in the home that made up Nick's childhood, but the majority of the house had been renovated or remodeled at some time or another. According to Nick, he had come from a low income background, but it was clear that life had treated his mother very well in the years that followed his leave. The house was much bigger than it had appeared from the outside, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a living room, and a basement, as well as a large backyard with patio and all. After Judy had been invited in, Nick's mother had given her the full tour. Mrs. Wilde kept a very neat and organized home that consisted of light greens and whites, with modern décor that matched nicely. Judy noted that the wallpaper looked vaguely similar to Nick's green Hawaiian shirt. Nick's mother was also a very wonderful hostess, as she quickly made coffee for Judy and herself, and took the cookies out of the oven just in time for both of them to share as they chatted. "I suggest we do something to take your mind off it."

"Okay, what were you thinking?"

"House hunting." The look of pride present on Mrs. Wilde's face made Judy grin. "That does sound nice," she admitted. "Wonderful! I'll get my car!"

For the remainder of the day, Nick's mother and Judy drove all around Zootopia, talking and bonding. They viewed dozens of houses, narrowing down each individual attribute that Judy was looking for. They narrowed their search when they both decided that it was better that the home was located Downtown, making it near to the ZPD and Mrs. Wilde's home. Using Judy's phone as a search engine, the two decided Judy and Nick would do the best in at least a two bedroom home with two bathrooms, and also using her phone as a GPS, the two found four homes that fit that description. After visiting all four, only one was absolutely perfect. It was a home that was painted white with a deep red color present in the trimming, and was located just two blocks from Main Street. According to an online source, the house was very similar to Mrs. Wilde's, consisting of three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a living room, and a joined dining area and kitchen. The backyard was also fairly big. Judy was in love in seconds. When she looked at the home, all she could see was her future children playing in the front yard, happy as can be. A few hours later, just as the sun was beginning to set, Mrs. Wilde had found a realtor, Judy had contacted a mortgage lender and had been pre-approved for a mortgage, Mrs. Wilde had made a price offer on the house, and Judy had obtained real estate insurance. No other two animals could have ever gotten so many important things done in such a short period of time. After a small celebration in the car that involved the two doing some very bad dancing and then laughing about it, Mrs. Wilde drove Judy back to the apartment her and Nick shared. "Thank you again, Mrs. Wilde."

"Not a problem at all, Dear. Oh, and do expect me to be paying for a large part of your home."

"You don't have to do that-"

"I _want_ to. When Nick was little, he asked me for very few things that involved spending money. Now, with just me living in my house, I spend very little each year. It would be an absolute honor to help you get your family started on a good pathway." Judy smiled and felt tears sting her eyes. "Thank you so much."

"It's not a problem at all, Honey. Now, go give Nick hell for what happened this morning, and then give him the good news."

"Will do," Judy laughed. She waved goodbye as Nick's mother drove away before heading up to the apartment. At the door to the apartment, Judy moved to put her key into the lock, but was surprised when the door opened before she was able to. "Carrots!" Nick looked frantic, as if he had been running around in an absolute panic just seconds before. He also looked extremely nervous, and from the way he stood in the entrance of the door, he seemed to be hiding something. Judy was immediately suspicious and narrowed her eyes to show him that she knew something was going on. "Nick?"

"How was your day?"

"How was _your_ day?"

"It was good."

"I'm sure it was."

"That's not what I meant-"

"Are you going to move?"

"Huh?"

"You're standing in the doorway." Nick glanced down at his feet before giving a nervous laugh. "I guess I am."

"So are you going to move?"

"I was thinking we could go out for dinner."

"Nick, I've had a long day and I'm tired. Maybe another time. Can you move so I can go inside?"

"I think that-"

"Nick, what's going on?"

"Nothing."

"Yeah, that doesn't sound suspicious at all. Why can't I go inside?" Nick didn't answer, he just gave Judy a pleading look that seemed to say "be gentle." Judy's narrowed eyes slowly widened, her temper rising at an extremely rapid pace. "Oh my God," Judy breathed. Nick's ears flattened against his head as he prepared for the worse. "She's in the freaking apartment, isn't she?" Nick cringed. "When you say 'she'-"

" _Are you kidding me, Nick_? Are you really _that_ stupid?" Judy hissed quietly, trying not to let Valerie hear her. "Carrots, it isn't what you think."

"Oh, yeah? Enlighten me then, Nick!"

"She doesn't have a place to stay, and-"

"You're damn right she doesn't, because she's not staying here!"

"It's just one night."

"Well I would love to know where she's sleeping if you're sleeping on the couch."

"Carrots, be reasonable."

"I am being reasonable! She is your ex, Nick! How would it make you feel if I had an ex and I let him just crash on our couch?"

"But you don't have an ex-"

"Are you purposely being thick right now? _She. Is. Not. Sleeping. Here_!"

"It's one night, I promise."

"But it isn't one night. It's almost nine more months with her! Nine more months of you two doing whatever you want while I watch from the sidelines. Six months of me going through this pregnancy by myself and then three more months of me raising your kids without you!"

"Carrots, it's not like that."

"It's not? You know, I found a house today. Your mom and I set everything up and the closing was supposed to be next week if everything went okay. I was actually excited to come home and tell you about it, and what do I find? Valerie in my apartment!"

"We weren't doing anything-"

"But how do I know that?" Nick's face fell. "You don't trust me?"

"You didn't trust me when all I was doing was planning a stupid birthday party." Nick sighed and shook his head. "That was a mistake on my part and you know it!"

"So is this." Silence fell between them as they both broke eye contact with one another. A tear slid down Judy's cheek, which she wiped away hastily. Looking down at her feet, Judy spoke, her voice cracking with emotion. "I would honestly leave right now, but you know that I have no place to go besides Bunnyburrow or your mother's home, and that I don't want to go and get into our car that I know will smell just like her."

"Carrots-"

"And I would honestly leave right now, if I wasn't afraid to be all alone."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"She can stay one night on the couch, and you can sleep in the bed," Judy muttered as she pushed past Nick. Tears now freely streaming down her face, Judy walked right past Valerie, who was sexually draped across the couch, a "guilty" expression on her face, and made her way back to the bedroom. Shutting the door quietly behind her, Judy collapsed in the bed and sobbed. It felt like an eternity before Nick finally entered the bedroom and crawled into bed. He took one look at Judy and opened his arms, which she gratefully crawled into. Without a word, Judy fell asleep in Nick's arms.


	12. Chapter 12

"I made breakfast! Judy, Sweetie, have a seat! Good morning, Nicky!"

Nick and Judy had awoken to the sound of sizzling and the smell of cooking foods. Judy had turned over in bed and looked Nick right in the eye. "I swear to God, if she's cooking…" she had whispered. "She wouldn't. Valerie isn't like that," Nick had reassured her. The two then got up and made their way down the hall to discover a very cheerful Valerie, already dressed and ready for the day, working away in the kitchen. At her words, Judy had promptly shot Nick a deadly glare, while he looked embarrassed, as if Valerie were a family member of his visiting. Judy then decided to force a smile made up of poison. "Thank you, Valerie, that is just so nice." Her voice was so sickly sweet, it sent shivers down Nick's spine. Nick knew that Judy had several different ways of approaching a situation she wasn't fond of, and it was clear that she had just chosen the "I'll play the fakest nice you've ever seen" way. Nick, however, didn't say a word; if anyone could make things worse right now, it was him. "No problem at all, Sweetie. It's the least I could do for letting me stay the night!" Nick noted that Valerie's tone held the same fake tone that Judy's had. With horror, he realized that this situation could only get worse from here on out. Judy smiled again, knowing that the game had started. "Nick, I'm going to shower and get ready for the day. Care to join me?"

"In the shower?"

"You're telling me you don't enjoy morning shower sex anymore?" Nick's whole body tensed. Had she really just said that? Yes, yes she had. Valerie raised an eyebrow but remained silent as she stirred the contents of the pans on the stovetop. "Uh, no, I'm coming," Nick muttered, still dazed. With an evil grin, Judy turned and walked down the hallway, purposely swinging her hips as she did so. Nick followed as if he were on a leash and she held it. Once he had made it to the entrance of the bathroom, Judy grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him in. "Hey, Sexy," she called loud enough for Valerie to hear before she shut the door. As soon as the door clicked shut, she turned to Nick, who was in absolute shock. "Did you really just do that?"

"Do what?"

"Tell her we were going to have sex in the shower!"

"Did you really think we were going to have sex in the shower?" Nick fixed her with a lazy stare. "How dare you play with my emotions."

"We aren't having sex until she leaves, Nick!" Judy began to remove her clothes, starting the shower as she did so. Nick's gaze swept up and down her body before she threw her shirt over his face with a noise of disgust. "I'm only doing this to show her that you're mine."

"Are you openly admitting that you're jealous?"

"Of course I'm jealous!" Still talking, Judy stepped into the shower and closed the curtain. "You can't say you wouldn't be too." Nick removed her shirt from his face and went to the sink to brush his canines. "I'm not going to leave you, Carrots," he called with a toothbrush in his mouth. "Oh, I know you won't leave me! If you left me, the whole ZPD, along with your mother, would know that you cheated on your pregnant girlfriend. I, however, can leave you if I really feel like it without too many consequences." Nick's jaw dropped open. "Are you serious?"

"I'm dead serious."

"That's evil! I'm not even cheating on you!"

"There's no proof of that. Besides, you know I'm right."

"You're blackmailing me!"

"I'm forcing you to make the right decision. Besides, I'm not going to leave you."

"Oh, yeah, that makes me feel loads better."

"I also know that you wouldn't leave me, because I mean, come on! Have you seen me?"

"Someone gained some confidence over night," Nick muttered. Judy laughed, now working her body wash into a lather. "I know you don't trust her, Nick."

"I take it my mother told you that."

"You can't have a partner you don't trust."

"Funny, we were partners."

"Oooh, what a punch! The point is, you have the power to tell the Chief that you want a new partner. If I told him that, he would dismiss me and tell me I'm being crazy."

"You are being crazy!"

"Drop her as your partner, Nick."

"Why would I do that?" Judy peered around the shower curtain. "You can't be serious. You are not about to remain partners with her to spite me!"

"I think I already am," Nick smirked as he threw a towel to Judy, who caught it and wrapped it around her body. "You aren't leaving me, that's what you said, right? So why should I be worried?" Judy gave an angry sigh before she stormed out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. Nick smirked again as he heard the door slam.

In the end, both he and Judy were aware that neither one would do anything drastic, but they would bite, kick, scratch, and punch until they had gotten their points across. It was true that Nick didn't trust Valerie as a partner. When they had dated, he was constantly worried that she was with another guy or that she was trying to steal his money behind his back. Now that she was back, he was afraid that she would hurt Judy in some way or steal from him. The fact that she had asked to stay the night only increased these feelings of worry. So no, she had never been trustworthy, but he didn't care. If staying partners with her angered Judy more, he would do it, just to establish that he was capable of making his own decisions. In the end, Nick and Judy did trust each other; Judy knew that Nick wouldn't do anything too stupid, and Nick knew that Judy wouldn't go too far, but who's to say that they couldn't have a little fun messing with one another? Yes, Judy had been upset the night before, and Nick had felt genuinely bad, but it was clear that the argument had taken a very sharp turn overnight.

Nick emerged from the bathroom and opened the bedroom door. Judy was dressed in navy blue leggings and a white long-sleeve shirt today. The shirt fit snugly around her growing abdomen. She was sitting on the bed and smoothing the fur on her ears when Nick had opened the door. "That was nice, but could have been better," Nick stated loudly with a smug expression. Judy stood and walked past him to the living room. "Sorry, Nick, sex is a little bit difficult nowadays since I'm twelve weeks pregnant with your four kids," Judy laughed dryly. "Nick, always so picky!" Judy shrugged after she caught the uncomfortable look on Valerie's face. Nick entered the living room a few minutes later, dressed in his uniform. The three then left the apartment and headed for the SUV. Judy hopped in the driver's seat, Nick in the passenger's seat, and Valerie in the back. "It smells _wonderful_ in here," Judy smiled as she shot Nick a look. Pulling out of the apartment complex's parking lot, Judy decided to engage Valerie in a conversation. "So tell me Valerie, how long have you worked for the ZPD?"

"Just a few months. This is my first major case."

"Well then I wish you luck!"

"She doesn't need luck if I'm her partner," Nick chuckled. "How very arrogant of you, Nick," Judy laughed. The rest of the car ride was silent, with Valerie shifting awkwardly in the backseat every now and then. When they arrived at work, the three parted ways, Judy to the offices, and Nick and Valerie down to records to dig up some information on their case.

For Judy, the day went by unbelievably slow. She typed up reports, took calls, filed papers, and other mindless tasks that unnerved her. A few of her fellow officers stopped by the cubicle throughout the day and welcomed her back or commented on her pregnancy, but nothing really seemed to make the day unique for her. In between tasks, Judy was usually listening to music, doodling on a piece of paper, or spinning around in her swivel chair. At 6:00 that evening, Judy clocked out and exited the offices to the lobby, where she found Clawhauser in his usual place at the reception desk. "Hi, Judy!"

"Hey, Clawhauser. How was your day?"

"Pretty average. Yours?"

"Just the same. I'm ready to go home."

"Do you want to talk about what happened yesterday?"

"Not really a whole lot to discuss if I'm honest."

"Are you and Nick doing okay?"

"We're fine. We're just going through a rough patch."

"This is a pretty big rough patch."

"Nah, it'll be over before you know it." Just then, the quiet lobby filled with commotion as an infuriated Valerie stomped past. Behind her, followed an anxious Nick, who was jogging to keep up. "Val, wait!" Judy looked up at Clawhauser with her eyebrows raised. "Rough patch over."

"No, Nick! I'm done! I quit! I'm going to talk to the Chief right now! Have fun finding a new partner!" Valerie yelled. Nick slowed his steps and came to a halt just a few feet from Judy. Judy looked at Clawhauser and winked before turning to Nick. "Everything okay?"

"She thinks I'm using her to make you mad." Judy nodded as if she were empathetic. "I totally get that. I was doing the exact same thing." At that, Nick grinned. "She quit."

"Does that make you happy?"

"It does, one-hundred percent. I just don't have a partner."

"I wouldn't worry about that too much."

"Why?" The silence of the lobby was once again broken as the Chief's booming voice shook the building. " _Wilde_! _Hopps_!"

"That's why," Judy smirked. "We'll see you tomorrow, Clawhauser." Clawhauser looked completely confused, but he waved goodbye as the couple walked up to the second floor.

"A perfectly good officer gone! All because of you two!" the Chief shrieked a few minutes later, after they had entered his office. "You've only been back for two days and everything is absolute chaos!"

"It's a shame," Nick said, trying not to laugh. "I don't find this funny, Wilde! Now you're out of partners!"

"I'm available."

"We have already discussed this, Hopps!"

"I'm cool with her being my partner."

"We have already discussed this!"

"Hey, Carrots, wanna be my partner?"

"I'd love to."

"There we go. Problem solved." The Chief was practically shaking with anger, his nostrils flaring as he looked from the bunny to the fox. "Fine," he sighed. "Just get out."

"Thank you, Chief!" Nick shouted as he and Judy exited. The Chief just shook his head, wondering how he would ever be able to handle those two. In their SUV, Judy and Nick broke down in laughter. "I can't believe you got her to quit!"

"I can't believe you threatened to blackmail me."

"We are horrible."

"We really are."

"I'm sorry for yelling so much."

"I'm sorry for being so inconsiderate. Are you okay?"

"I am, but I do have a question."

"What?"

"You trust me, right?"

"Of course. Do you trust me?"

"You make me nervous, but yes."

"You know I wouldn't cheat on you, right?"

"Yes, I do. You know I wouldn't leave you, right?"

"Yep."

"Okay… I love you."

"I love you too, Carrots."


	13. Chapter 13

"You ready?"

"Yeah, hurry up, this box is heavy."

"Okay. Here we are!"

"Wow."

Nick took one glance at the inside of the house and knew it was perfect. This was the first time that he had been able to see the house his mother and Judy had picked out, and he wasn't disappointed. It was a bit of a fixer-upper, but what house wasn't? For him and Judy and their family, it was the most beautiful thing to happen to them since Judy had announced that she was pregnant. It had taken a little bit longer than expected for the house to be officially closed in Judy's name - almost a month and a half longer, but it had been nonetheless. In that time, Judy and Nick used boxes to pack up their apartment and black markers to label everything. Just the day before, all of the paperwork had been officially approved and this morning, the couple began to move their things in with the help of Mrs. Wilde and a few friends from work. Judy did the unpacking, as Nick wouldn't let her lift anything heavy. She was now almost eighteen weeks pregnant, her back beginning to officially arch in with her pregnancy. "Well, what do you think?"

"It's amazing. Good pick, Carrots."

"Thank you," Judy smiled. "But your mother is the reason we have the house."

"I still can't believe she paid as much as she did."

"She's amazing. When she said that she would pay a large portion, I didn't know that meant all of it plus more." Nick's mother had indeed made an offer on the house that was debated and discussed several times before it was officially decided on. Then, Nick's mother had paid for not only the house, but had also given Judy and Nick enough money to fix the home up and add things to it. "Remind me to send her a gift, Nick. Delgato! Be careful with that box, it's full of our dishes!"

"How's the unpacking going?"

"Pretty good. I unpacked clothes, pictures, some blankets and towels, but that's about it."

"I'll be able to help in a minute. We're down to the last few boxes and pieces of furniture. We don't really have that much stuff."

"Okay. You're going to my appointment today, right?" Nick smiled. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." Later that day, Judy was set for a check-up appointment that would also reveal the sexes of all four babies. Although Nick and Judy had argued over it for the last few weeks, they had decided that it would be better to know… well, that and Judy was just too impatient to not know. After the appointment, the couple planned on going to pick up some cans of paint to redo the house and to pick up some baby supplies. "I'm looking forward to it," Judy grinned. "Oh, and don't forget that we are visiting my parents next week." Nick groaned. "I forgot about that."

"Quit whining, my parents love you."

"No, they hate me."

"How could they hate you?"

"Firstly, I'm a fox. Secondly, I'm a fox who started dating their rabbit daughter _without_ their knowledge. Oh, yeah, and thirdly, I'm a fox who got his girlfriend, their rabbit daughter, pregnant, also without their knowledge."

"I fail to see the problem."

"You would," Nick chuckled as he set down the box that he had been carrying. "Can I see upstairs?" With a big grin plastered across her face, Judy gave Nick a full tour of the house, telling him where she planned to place certain things. "I'm thinking we place the crib against that wall," Judy stated as she gestured to a wall with one paw, the other resting on her lower back. "Crib?"

"Yeah, I decided to get only one."

"Are they going to have enough room?"

"Of course! They're sharing my womb, aren't they?" At the look on Nick's face, Judy laughed herself to near tears. "I'm kidding! Well, I mean, it's true, but I ordered a huge crib, and we can divide it with pillows if we really need to."

"Is this the crib we're picking up later?"

"Yes, it's absolutely gorgeous. It's made from wood that's been stained black. That's why I want to paint the wall behind the crib and the opposite wall a turquoise kind of color, with the other two painted white."

"Okay, I think that would look nice."

"I knew you would love it. Now, come in here really quick." Judy led Nick down the hall just a ways to the master bedroom. Their bed had already been set up and centered against the farthest wall from the door. "I'm thinking that the wall behind the bed should be a deep red color, with the other walls white."

"Okay, and how do you want to do our bathroom?" Nick asked as he gestured to the bathroom that joined the master bedroom through a small hallway set opposite from the bed. The master bedroom's bathroom technically didn't have a door, just a small hall that led into a large bathroom with a tub, shower, two sinks, large mirrors, and a toilet included. "Probably the same way," Judy shrugged. "I don't know, we'll see how it goes. I really like the gray tile, though, and I think it would look great with a dark red."

"The bathroom across the hall from the kids' room?"

"Same colors as their room?"

"Sounds good to me."

"And I want to keep the carpet white, so we may have to hire someone to professionally clean it."

"A white carpet with four kids?"

"They'll keep it clean or I'll make them clean it."

"Ha, alright, Mom."

"I would like the kitchen painted the same way as our room; I think that would look nice with the applewood cabinets."

"Okay, keep the white tile?"

"Yes. What should we do with the living room and the dining room, though?"

"I like turquoise, just like the kids' room. Besides, no use in buying more paint than we have to."

"Right, I like that idea."

"We'd have to get a new couch with those colors…"

"Thank God, I hated that couch."

"You slept on it for like two years!"

"I know, but I was just trying to be nice. I was secretly hoping it would break so I wouldn't have to sleep on it anymore."

"You could have just told me."

"And sleep where?"

"In my bed."

"With you? We weren't even dating when I first started sleeping on that thing!"

"We could have started dating sooner."

"I still slept on the couch when we started dating."

"You're something else," Nick laughed. Judy laughed too, playfully punching him in the arm as she did so. "You love me."

"Do I? Yes, yes I do."

"That's my line!"

"You don't own it!" The two continued to laugh and chat for a few more minutes before Nick's mother came in and interrupted, telling Nick to go help move boxes while she talked to Judy. With a kiss goodbye, Nick left to help, while Judy and Mrs. Wilde walked through the house and discussed the designs and plans Judy had. A few hours later, everything was moved in. Now alone, Judy and Nick worked around the house, unpacking things as they went. At about a quarter before 2:00, the couple left the house and made their way to Judy's appointment with her pediatrician. "Are you nervous?" Judy asked as Nick drove down Main Street. "Should I be?"

"How do you always manage to ruin an adorable moment between us?" Judy laughed, as Nick rolled his eyes. "I'll admit that I'm a little nervous."

"Ooh, big tough Nick isn't so big and tough anymore!"

"I answered your question, you hypocrite!" For what felt like the millionth time that day, the two broke down in side-clenching laughter. It wasn't long after that that they pulled into the parking lot of the clinic. Paw in paw, the two walked in, checked in at the reception desk, and sat patiently in the waiting room. Judy's pediatrician was a very kind tiger named Kara, who loved the fact that Nick and Judy were an interspecies couple. For Judy, waiting for her name to be called to begin her appointment felt like an eternity, when in reality it was only a few minutes before the tiger arrived and called her name with a smile. After the usual medical requirements and some idle chatter, Judy's ultrasound began. "Okay, Mom. There's Baby 1," Kara stated as she pointed to the monitor. "There's Baby 2's foot, and then there is Baby 2. Oh, and here's Baby 4, waaaaaay over here. And last but not least, Baby 3 is down here."

"Baby 3 seems a bit far down, don't you think?" Nick asked, a little worry present in his tone. Kara only smiled. "Not at all, Dad. Everything is perfectly normal." Nick nodded, still not fully convinced. Judy reached out and gripped his paw reassuringly. "Would we like to know genders?"

"Yes," Judy grinned, her paw squeezing Nick's in anticipation. Nick took a deep breath, not really sure why he was so nervous. That feeling was back again, the balloon filling with air, his chest caving in with every breath he took. He glanced down at Judy, whose eyes were glued to the monitor, waiting for Kara to tell her. God, she was beautiful. Why didn't he tell her that more often? He definitely should, she deserved it. Nick briefly cleared his head of all of the cluttering thoughts and tried to focus long enough to hear what Kara was saying. She had started talking, but Nick hadn't been listening. Oh, God, had she already said it? " _No, Judy isn't all over me in excitement yet_ ," he thought. "Nick?" It was Judy. "Huh?"

"I asked if you were okay."

"Oh, yeah, sorry. I zoned out for a little bit."

"You sure? You look like you just saw a ghost."

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Don't worry, Dad, everybody gets a little nervous when they find out," Kara reassured him with a pleasant voice and a smile. "Try to take deep breaths, okay?" Nick nodded, breathing in deeply through his nose a few times. Judy giggled quietly, making Nick look down at her and make an exaggerated face of annoyance. "We ready?" Kara asked. Judy answered affirmative once more, this time keeping her eyes on Nick. "Okay, let's do this baby by baby." Nick and Judy kept eye contact as they listened to Kara write something down before speaking again. "Baby 1 is a boy." Judy's face split into a grin, and she squeezed Nick's paw again. Nick smiled down at her, taking another deep breath. "Baby 2 is also a boy." This time, Nick let out a nervous chuckle. "Two boys, wow. We're going to have a pawful."

"Make that three, Dad." Judy put her free paw over her mouth to stifle a laugh. "That's three and they're all boys!" she giggled beneath her paw. "You think it's funny, but you just wait; they're all going to act just like me," Nick snickered. "That'll be my worst nightmare! Four Nicks!"

"I bet you ten bucks that Baby 4 is a girl," Nick smirked. Judy's eyes glinted with interest. "No way, definitely a boy."

"Is that a bet then?"

"You're on." Kara shook her head in amusement before turning back to the screen. "Uh-oh, Mom, it looks like Dad just got ten dollars richer. Baby 4 is a little girl." That's when Judy cried. In fact, she cried so hard that Kara gave them a few minutes to be alone. The crying briefly stopped when Judy got dressed, but then she quickly resumed crying, this time into Nick's shoulder. "Carrots, what is going on?"

"I just can't believe we are going to be parents!" she sobbed. Nick smiled and ran a paw over one of her ears. "Three little boys and one little girl. Now that we've got genders, we need names."


	14. Chapter 14

"There's no way I'm giving one of my sons _that_ name."

"Aw, come on! Even your mother thinks that Piberius would be an adorable name."

"That's because she picked it out herself!" Judy fell back on the floor and laughed. Smiling, Nick joined her on the floor that had been covered in pieces of cardboard. The pieces of cardboard had been used to contain and transport the new appliances Nick and Judy had ordered for the kitchen before they tore them all apart. Now, the pieces of cardboard, as well as Nick and Judy, were covered in paint. They were in the master bedroom, two of the four walls already painted and ready for a second coat. The kitchen and the master bedroom's bathroom had already been painted, as the couple had decided to paint all of the rooms that they had designated as red and white first. Nick and Judy were not expert painters, but they had a system that worked: Nick would move anything that was pressed against the walls, Judy would stir the paint, and then each would grab a brush and paint one of the two colors. When painting colors, the couple alternated between rooms. Judy painted red in the kitchen, while Nick painted white, but then Judy painted white in the master bedroom's bathroom, while Nick painted red, and now Judy was back to red and Nick was back to white. It was early evening and the soft orange light from the setting sun filled their bedroom with a perfect type of stillness. The two had been painting since early morning, after acquiring all of the needed supplies after Judy's appointment yesterday afternoon. Along with painting, they had also been arguing about baby names.

"You never like any of the names I pick, Nick," Judy laughed as she sat up on the floor and continued painting the trim of the room. Nick then stood up too, and climbed up the ladder he had been using to paint as close to the ceiling as possible without touching it. "That's not true."

"It so is."

"Alright, list off names. Rapid fire."

"Boy names or girl names?"

"Boy names; we're going to need three of those. Give 'em to me. Go."

"Jackson."

"No."

"Aiden."

"No."

"Liam."

"Nope."

"Lucas."

"Nu-uh."

"Noah."

"No."

"Mason."

"That's a type of jar."

"Cooper."

"No."

"Aaron."

"No."

"You aren't even trying!"

"Keep going."

"Thumper."

"Do not name one of my kids after a rabbit joke."

"Kyle."

"No."

"Robin."

"Ooooh, hold up. Did you say Robin?"

"Yeah, why?"

"How in love with that name are you?"

"I think it's cute."

"Then we've got one. Keep going, this is working."

"Ethan."

"No."

"James."

"No."

"Nick."

"Hey, that's my name! _No._ "

"Connor."

"Nope."

"Alan."

"Freeze! Yes."

"Yes to Alan?"

"Yes to Alan. Keep going, we need one more."

"Cameron."

"Nu-uh."

"Andrew."

"No."

"Hunter."

"No."

"Dylan."

"No."

"Matthew."

"No."

"Uh…" Judy tried to think of another name, but her brain failed her as it went completely blank. Glancing down in thought, her eyes rested upon the paintbrush she held in her paw; the paintbrush that was coated in a dark color of red. "Red."

"What?"

"I said Red." Nick glanced over at Judy. "Like the color?"

"Yeah, I think it's cute." Nick nodded his head in thought, his eyebrows scrunched together. "Okay, I could live with it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I like it too. So Robin, Alan, and Red, right?"

"Yes, and of course, let's make these tentative names for the time being. I have to really see my kids to know if those names would fit them, you know?"

"I gotcha. Now we just need one little girl name." Both went silent for a few minutes as they racked their brains for the perfect name for a girl. After almost fifteen minutes, they still had nothing, so for the mean time, Nick changed the subject. "Here, let me see the red paint so I can get the top of the wall for you."

"It's okay, I can do it."

"I don't want you up on a ladder." Judy rolled her eyes, but handed Nick the can of paint as he scaled the miniature ladder. Once he reached the top, Judy handed him the paintbrush she had been using, which he lightly dipped in paint before going to work. "Let's reverse the rapid fire thing. You go."

"Okay. Sarah."

"No."

"Taylor."

"No."

"Karen."

"No."

"Tina."

"No."

"Lauren."

"Nope."

"I'm out of girl names."

"You only listed five!"

"It's hard!" Judy sighed. "Why was it so easy to think of _three_ names for the boys, but now it's hard to come up with _one_ name for our daughter?" Judy stated as she watched Nick paint. Now, with nothing to do, Judy placed her paws on her lower back and paced around the room. "I think it's because we only have one girl, so we want her name to be absolutely perfect," Nick replied. Judy nodded as she considered this. "Of course I want her name to be perfect- _Ah_!"

"Judy?" Fear gripping his heart, Nick turned swiftly to look down at Judy, who was glaring at him. While he had been painting and talking, Nick hadn't noticed that the can of paint he had hanging from his arm had begun to tip. In an event that could only be labeled as a coincidence, Judy had walked near the ladder just as a hefty amount of paint came pouring down, dousing her in the color red. The shock from the cold liquid was enough to make her let out a yelp that echoed throughout the house. Glancing down at his girlfriend, Nick had to cover his mouth with a paw to keep from laughing. " _Nick_!" Turning away to hide his face so that Judy wouldn't get any angrier from seeing his reaction to the hilarious situation, Nick became completely oblivious to what happened next. Judy, instantly seeking revenge for the fun of it, picked up Nick's unattended paintbrush, soaked it in the can of white paint, and slapped it against his back, making him shiver and yell out in surprise.

In the next ten minutes, Judy and Nick chased each other around the house with their paintbrushes, marking each other up with red and white. Careful to only hit one another, and not any of the walls, floors, or furniture, the house filled with laughter and absolute chaos. Until Judy slipped, that is. They had been in the kitchen, Judy chasing Nick, when Judy's feet slid out from under her on the tiled floor. Thankfully, just seconds before, Nick had felt the balloon in his chest fill with air. That filling balloon forced his whole body to turn around in a whim, just in time to catch a falling Judy. Their paintbrushes clattered to the floor, momentarily making a mess of paint on the surrounding tiles. The house fell silent before the couple both let out quiet laughs at how the entire situation had played out. Judy regained her balance and stood, but remained in Nick's grasp. Nick let out another laugh as he looked into Judy's eyes and saw that almost her entire face and head had been covered in red pain when he had accidentally let the paint can slip. Judy gave him a playful punch to the shoulder, before looking right back into his eyes. "Have I ever told you you're beautiful?" Judy's face flushed a light pink, a color that was barely visible under the paint that was currently caked into her fur. She gave him a sly smile before standing on her tippy toes to kiss him; a kiss that lasted for a few blissful moments. When they pulled apart, Nick looked into Judy's eyes again. "Violet."

"What? Are we playing the color game? Blue! Yellow!" Nick chuckled.

"No, your eyes are violet."

"Don't tell me that you're just noticing this now."

"You aren't getting what I'm saying."

"Are you calling me stupid?"

"Oh my God, Carrots, listen to what I am saying."

"You said my eyes are violet…and?"

"I want our daughter to be named Violet." Judy's mouth made an "o" shape, making Nick laugh before bringing her in for another kiss.


	15. Chapter 15

"I wonder how much the town has changed, like how many trees, bushes, and flowers have grown."

"Huh uh."

"Or how many new shops and stands there are."

"Yeah."

"Or if there are any new homes or new families there now."

"Yep."

"I _really_ wonder how many siblings I have now. You know how us bunnies multiply!"

"Mmm hmm."

"You aren't even listening."

"Yep... I mean, huh? Yeah, what? No, I'm listening!" Judy giggled as she watched Nick flounder back into the conversation. The two were comfortably seated in their SUV, Nick in the driver's seat, Judy in the passenger's seat, and the two were on their way to Bunnyburrow to visit Judy's family before the famous arrival of four new family members took place. It had been almost two months since Judy had seen her parents, and almost a year since she had seen Bunnyburrow, as well as the rest of her family. It was early in the morning, but Judy had insisted that they leave at a time when the day was cool, that way it felt as if the car was breezy and open with the windows down, and not stuffy and awkward. However, Nick always had a habit of sleeping in on Saturdays, no matter how much caffeine he ingested, so he wasn't exactly "wide awake" just yet. Nick was wearing his usual pair of khakis and his green Hawaiian shirt, while Judy was dolled up in a lavender dress that complimented the color of her fur. "You so weren't, Nick."

"I definitely was. Go on. You were saying something about Clawhauser?"

"I wasn't saying anything about Clawhauser!" Judy laughed. Nick shook his head slightly before chuckling. "Did I say Clawhauser? I meant the Chief. What were you saying about the Chief?"

"I wasn't talking about work at all!"

"Ah, then I was most definitely not listening." Judy giggled again as she rolled her eyes and pretended to be annoyed. "I was just saying that I was wondering how much has changed since I left."

"This might be a wild guess, but I would say that there are probably a lot more bunnies now then there was a year ago."

"Imagine all of the siblings we haven't even met yet!"

"Ah, no thank you to that."

"Hey, no wiggling out of this. You are meeting my family. _All_ of my family." Nick groaned, but then smiled and glanced over at Judy. "Quit acting like my mother. In fact, quit acting like a mother in general, it's creeping me out."

"I wonder how Gideon Grey is..." Judy muttered just loud enough for Nick's ear to perk up immediately. The car skidded slightly as Nick's foot slipped off the gas pedal and fell on the brake momentarily. Judy yelped out in surprise, placing both of her paws on the dashboard as she did so. Nick quickly regained control of the car, accelerating it back to the speed limit before turning to look at Judy. "Who?"

"What?" Judy sounded out of breath and slightly traumatized. "You wonder how who is?" Nick pressed. At the tone in his voice, Judy turned to him, a grin spreading across her face like a wildfire in a dying forest. "Did you really almost kill us just now because you were jealous?"

"I'm not jealous, and I didn't almost kill us; I'm a wonderful driver."

"Nick, I know you're jealous because I can hear it! You don't even know who Gideon is."

"I'm not jealous, Carrots. I almost killed us because - I mean, I didn't almost kill us, I just hit the brakes! _Anyway_ , I reacted because you're wondering about the fox that attacked you as a kid." Judy went silent, deep in thought for a moment. "Yeah, I know who he is. You told me a long time ago, and trust me, I didn't forget it."

"He's different, though. I saw him that one time after and-"

"You saw him? When? Why?"

"After you and I had that fight after that press conference and I went back to Bunnyburrow for a few months."

"How many times did you see him exactly?"

"I only saw him once and-"

"Where were you when you saw him?"

"I was at my family's stand, why does that matter-"

"What did he say?"

"He just apologized for-"

"For what?"

"Jesus, that's what I'm trying to tell you! Why do you keep interrupting-"

"Well, at first I was very curious, now I'm just doing it for fun," Nick chuckled, which received him a punch in the arm from Judy. "But seriously, do you think we're going to see him again?"

"Well, yeah, I called him the other day."

 _SCREECH_

The SUV came to a very unsteady and quick stop by the actions of Nick. Judy yelled again, but Nick ignored her. He had stopped the car in the middle of the road that ran between Zootopia and Bunnyburrow. Several wooded areas and a few carrot fields surrounded them, but no other traffic. "Nick! Are you insane?"

"You _called_ him? When?"

"Last week just when we were getting ready to move. I called my parents too. I was just letting friends and family know that we were moving and that we were visiting soon."

"What exactly did you say to Gideon?"

"'Hi, Gideon! Just wanted to let you know that I'm visiting next weekend. I was hoping we could catch up.'"

"Anything else?"

"Well, yeah. I told him I'm pregnant."

" _Why_?"

"Are you saying this in a jealous tone or a worried tone?"

"Both!"

"And you thought that stopping the car would help, why?"

"You didn't need to call him!"

"He's an old family friend!"

"So is Finnick, but you don't see me calling him every time I'm near him!"

"Oh, you're being ridiculous."

"And you weren't with Valerie?" Oh, that did it. The gaze that Judy fixed Nick with could have killed, making him draw back slightly. He shrugged, as if to say "I mean, it's true, though." Judy huffed a sigh. "Get out of the car."

"Whoa, I didn't mean-"

"Oh, I'm not making you walk! I'm driving."

"But I like driving."

"Yeah, but if you _keep_ driving, you are going to induce labor!"

"You're only four months-"

" _Exactly_! Get. Out." Pouting as he did so, Nick got out of the car and walked around to the other side, while Judy slid across the seats. The next few minutes were filled by silence only interrupted every moment or so by Judy sighing angrily. Nick, however, had expected Judy to have a "moment" some time during the car ride, due to the fact that it was a somewhat lengthy trip and she was pregnant. It felt like every ten minutes she was either crying, yelling, sleeping, laughing, or complaining, but Nick didn't mind. This was his life mate, his girlfriend, his wife-to-be; he had signed up for this. He never became angry, he argued, but he never became angry or upset. After almost four months of experience, Nick had learned that being quiet was honestly the best thing he could do. Unfortunately, Nick could _never_ be quiet. "So Gideon does what exactly?" Judy rolled her eyes, already wanting to strangle Nick. "He makes pies."

"Like running a bakery?"

"Yes."

"Hmm," Nick murmured in thought. Judy glanced over at him, annoyed that that was all he wanted to know. "What?"

"Nothing."

"You asked a question, didn't you?" Nick heard the anger rising in Judy's tone, and smirked. "I just find it interesting that he works at a bakery."

"Why?" Nick remained silent, but Judy's intuition answered her question for her. "Are you really comparing the fact that you are an officer to him being a baker?" Nick shrugged, trying not to have a facial expression. Judy, however, was on fire. "You were a _con artist_ at one point! Not even a good one, either! You hustled pawpsicles!"

"Hey, that was a reasonable business!" The rest of the trip to Bunnyburrow was filled with Judy's angry sighs and Nick's instigating smirks. When they finally arrived, Judy seemed to have gained the majority of her cheery mood back. Within seconds of parking the SUV, she was out of the car, already dragging her things from the backseat. Nick was quick, grabbing her bags before she hurt herself. It was mid morning when they arrived, the sun warm and comforting with a gently breeze in the air. Now weighed down by their luggage, Nick followed Judy up to the front door of her family's burrow. She didn't even get the chance to ring the doorbell, knock on the door, or even reach for either one before the door flew open. It was Judy's parents who answered, but Nick barely had the chance to even look them in the eye due to the fact that he was immediately blinded by the army of baby bunnies that flew toward his face after the door had opened. He yelled out, but was tackled before he could do much else. The mountain of bunnies that trampled him were screaming a million joyful sentences in high-pitched voices, a noise that instantly deafened Nick on top of being blind. Judy just giggled and hugged both of her parents in greeting. "Hey, Mom! Hey, Dad!"

"Judy, Honey, look at you!" Bonnie smiled as she gestured toward Judy's abdomen. "Just about four and half months now," Judy laughed. "Almost half way through!"

"Are you all set up? Have everything you need?"

"Yes, Dad, of course. We just finished painting the house yesterday."

"Oh, Judy, you'll have to send pictures when you get back!"

"I will, Mom." Nick let out a groan as he attempted to lift himself off of the ground and away from the hoard of bunnies. Most of the babies seemed to be attracted to his tail, which was now nearly invisible among the bunnies. He attempted to brush off the children without harming them, but did not prevail. He then gave Judy and her parents a pleading look. Judy rolled her eyes, but walked over and picked up one of the youngest children who was attached to Nick's shirt. The little baby bunny wore a tiny blue sundress and sported a bright blue bow placed at the base of one of her ears. She smiled happily at Judy's attention. "Okay, let's give Nick a break, you guys. Why don't you all go find one toy to show him after lunch?" At this, the bunnies grinned and shrieked before running in different directions to find a toy to present later on. Nick sighed and attempted to smooth his ruffled fur. "Thanks, Carrots. I still can't figure out how you're so good at that."

"Good at what?" Judy asked as she gently rocked the baby bunny in her arms, glancing down with loving expressions. "That." Nick gestured at the giggling baby before smoothing his tail. "Here," Judy smiled as she passed the baby into Nick's arms. The fox went stiff, uncomfortable with the little squiggling life in his hands. Judy laughed and stepped forward to help. "Bend your arms and make a little cradle."

"Like this?"

"Yes, but don't be so stiff. You're holding a baby, not a doll."

"Okay."

"Now move your arms closer to your body so that she's nestled against you. There. You got it." Nick held his breath as the bunny nuzzled up to him, tugging on his shirt gently as she made herself comfortable. Judy smiled at the two before giving Nick a swift kiss on the cheek. "I'm going to go help my parents make lunch. I'll be right back." Judy turned and strolled into her family burrow after her parents. Nick immediately went stiff again. "Carrots! Wait! Take the baby! Carrots!" Judy ignored him, the skirt of her dress bouncing slightly as she shut the front door behind her. Nick stood alone in front of the burrow, a partially asleep baby in his arms. "Okay... okay, I can do this," Nick muttered hesitantly to himself as he peered down at the snoozing bunny. He readjusted slightly, trying to take the baby out of the blindingly bright sunlight, but stopped when he saw her stir. Leaving the luggage in the yard for the time being, Nick then shuffled towards the front door, where he eased the door open with his back. Once inside, he quietly nudged the door shut. Letting out a sigh of relief and believing to have succeeded, Nick took a step forward further into the house. Unfortunately, his foot his a toy, which came to life with incredibly loud music. The baby instantly started crying, completely wailing at the top of her lungs. Nick sighed heavily. "This is going to be a great weekend."


	16. Chapter 16

Only one word is needed to describe an average meal in the Hopps household: chaos. Absolute chaos. Baby bunnies were everywhere; they bounced off the walls, jumped on the table and chairs, coated the floor. Bonnie had made a fantastically delicious carrot stew that was yummy for everyone one except for Nick, who still forced the vegetables down politely. Nick and Judy sat opposite of Judy's parents, letting the chaos around them just happen. Judy's siblings were a force to be reckoned with, and this wasn't even all of them; Judy's older siblings and the younger siblings who were close to her in age had left the house long ago to pursue their own goals and dreams within the confines of Bunnyburrow, with Judy being the exception. All that remained was the little ones, but that was nowhere near ideal. However, it seemed that Nick was the only one not accustomed to the constant movement in the Hopps home, but he didn't complain. After all, he was pretty sure that if he did complain, the hoard of bunnies would surely outrun him, but although Nick was slightly overwhelmed, he couldn't help but admit that he was beginning to enjoy all of Judy's younger siblings. Granted, he had had a somewhat bad experience with one of Judy's baby sisters earlier when she had begun wailing, but Judy had quickly come to the rescue, taking the baby into her arms and soothing her with light kisses. Nick had actually been sad to see her leave his arms, but he had enjoyed seeing the baby giggle and smile again at the sight of Judy. Nick was also becoming more comfortable with the kids when they were all interested in him at the same time. Just moments before everyone had been served for lunch, he had asked to see all of the toys the baby bunnies had collected, even though he technically didn't have to see them until after lunch. He had actually enjoyed seeing the excitement on all of the bunnies' faces as they fought over one another to show him their individual toys, which consisted of various stuffed animals and items from around the house.

Nick was starting to feel as if this trip to Bunnyburrow was going to teach him a thing or two about parenthood. After only a few hours of interacting with all of the baby bunnies, he was starting to think that he could actually be a pretty good father, and that maybe he wasn't as unprepared as he had originally thought. He had also quickly learned that Judy was going to be the perfect mother; seeing her caring nature toward all of her siblings confirmed that. Nick had always considered Judy to be the perfect mother, but now he had witnessed her amazing mothering skills and this reassured him that even if he was bad at parenting at first, she had his back. Just then, Nick's thoughts were interrupted by a clattering sound that managed to be louder than anything else in the room. Looking up, it became clear that Judy had dropped her spoon, letting it clang against the edge of her bowl. He barely had time to notice this, however, before Judy was shaking him excitedly. "We completely forgot to tell them!"

"Tell them what?" Nick asked, afraid that he hadn't been listening to her again. Judy's parents looked on in curiosity. "Tell us what?" Stu asked, eyeing the two somewhat suspiciously. "About my last appointment, Nick," Judy whispered with a smile. "Ah, _that_." Nick nodded and smirked lazily as he finally understood her instant excitement. "Tell us what, Judy?" Bonnie pressed, clearly feeling left out of something important. "We found out the sexes of the babies earlier this week," Judy grinned, waiting for a reaction. Her parents' faces lit up instantly in approval. "That's wonderful!" Bonnie exclaimed. "What are you having?" Stu asked. Judy looked at Nick and nudged him, as if to say "Go on, tell them. They're your family too!" Nick looked up and smiled politely at the awaiting couple. "Three boys and a girl," he answered. "How precious! Congratulations you two!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Hopps."

"We've already picked out names!" Judy grinned again. "Allan, Robin, and Red for the boys, and Violet for the girl."

"Well, how about that. Those are perfect names, Jude the Dude."

"They're tentative, but we're pretty sure at the moment. Speaking of which, Nick, we haven't told your mother this either."

"We can tell her when we get back."

"She'll be so excited to know! We should call her later today and tell her."

"If we tell her while we're gone, she'll go out and buy baby clothes, and then break into the house to put them in the kids' room," Nick smirked. "Oh, this is all so exciting!" Bonnie stated cheerfully as she reached out across the table and squeezed Judy's paw in delight. "When is the wedding?" In Nick's mind gears halted, brakes screeched, glass shattered, smiles disappeared, children screamed. Fear crept down his spine as the million dollar question hit his ears like a gun shot. Stu had a habit of asking the questions that put everyone else on edge, but they were the important kind of questions that needed to be answered in a relatively soon manner. Judy cleared her throat nervously. "Well, we're still working that all out, but it will be after the babies are born." Stu nodded as he mulled this over. He then turned to Nick. "Have you proposed yet?" Nick's ears flattened against his head. This question was directed at him, not both he and Judy; if he didn't answer, it would look awful. "Well, uh… I haven't _officially_ proposed-"

"Why not?" His tone wasn't angry, but very curious, almost suspicious. "I, uh, well… I just need to do a few things first."

"Like what? Get the ring?" Nick leaned back in his seat a little, somewhat more comfortable with this question than the other. "No, I actually already have the ring," he stated confidently. At this, Judy's ears perked up and her nose twitched slightly. She directed her attention toward Nick. "You already have the ring?" Nick glanced at her, but then glanced away, trying to keep eye contact with Stu. "Yes, I do."

"When did you get it?" At this question, Nick almost blushed. He felt his face turn warm as he tried to dodge answering. "Awhile ago," he shrugged, now facing Judy more than he had. "When exactly?" Of course she asked as many important questions as her father, that's where she got it from. Nick didn't want to answer this question, though. He didn't want to admit that he had bought the ring a very long time ago. He didn't want to admit that after Judy had left to go back to Bunnyburrow after their fight during the case that made their careers, he had used the money he had made while hustling pawpsicles to special order a wedding ring. He didn't want to admit that he had given it to Finnick for the time being, until he and Judy had started dating. He didn't want to admit that when he had gotten the ring back from Finnick, he had been absolutely ecstatic. He didn't want to admit that he kept it in his shirt pocket all of the time, right next to the iconic carrot pen the couple shared.

Shifting in his seat uneasily, Nick managed to mutter a reply. "…almost four years ago…" He immediately looked down at his lap, his face burning. The ring in his pocket seemed to feel heavy. Judy's mouth fell agape and her eyes stung with tears. "You bought it just a little bit after we met?" Nick nodded, not really wanting to speak, but he knew he had to explain. To him, this was a major embarrassment; he had barely gotten to know Judy in an intimate way before he went out and bought a ring that he would hope she would wear. "I bought it after we fought during that press conference. I didn't really start considering using it until we started dating." Judy smiled and hugged him tightly. "That's so sweet, Nick." Nick felt his face become even warmer as he smiled slightly and hugged her back. "Why didn't you tell me before?" she asked after pulling back. Nick shrugged lightly. "I was nervous, honestly. I know I should have proposed sooner, but it just didn't feel right yet." Judy smiled again, tears still in her eyes, and kissed Nick on the cheek. Bonnie looked like she might also cry and Stu looked happier than he did a few minutes ago. "So Nick, what things do you have to do first?" he asked. "I have a date in mind, which I won't say because we have a certain someone in the room," Nick winked at Judy, who blushed. "But one thing I have to do is ask you permission." Silence fell over the table. Most of the children had finished eating and had left the room to go and invoke chaos somewhere else, but there was still a dull roar among those left. For those who sat at the table, all attention was turned toward Stu as they all waited expectantly. When Stu finally did react to what Nick had said, Nick froze in shock. Stu Hopps laughed. Stu Hopps laughed, but it was a joyful laugh that brought a smile to Bonnie's face as well as eased the tension. He then stood up, sliding his chair back as he did so, and walked around to Nick, who also stood. Once in front of Nick, who was slightly taller then him, he clapped a paw on Nick's shoulder and brought him in for a large hug. Still laughing, he held Nick out by his shoulders and looked him up and down. "I like you, Nick. You seem like you have everything figured out. I would be more than happy if you married Judy. You'll make a great husband and a great father."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Bonnie and I want an invitation to the wedding, of course. I'd like to walk my daughter down the aisle."

"Of course."

"We'd also like to see you propose to her, if that's possible."

"Yes, I can do that." With that, Stu gave Nick another pat on the shoulder before reaching across and grabbing his bowl of carrot stew that was now empty. "Anybody up for seconds?" The table laughed, and Judy stood to kiss Nick, who had a huge grin on his face. The entire moment was full of joy and perfection as more carrot stew was passed around. The blissful memory in the making came to a halt a few minutes later when someone knocked at the front door. "Come in!" Bonnie called out. No one was really paying attention to who it was until he stepped into the room. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" His country drawl attracted everyone's eyes, especially Nick's. Moments before, Nick's body had been red hot from embarrassment, but he now iced over at the realization that the fox in front of him could only be the same fox that he and Judy had argued about on the ride up and the same fox that had scratched Judy when they were kids. Judy shot up from her chair, a huge smile on her face. "Gideon!"


	17. Chapter 17

_"_ _You can't do this!"_

 _"_ _Watch me!"_

 _"_ _Please, you can't just leave!"_

 _"_ _You wanna bet me, Wilde?" Judy opened the door to the burrow and waddled out into the cool night. Working around her swollen abdomen, she readjusted the bag that was slung over her shoulder before turning back to look at Nick. "Carrots, wait! Where are going to go? You can't be by yourself like this."_

 _"_ _I'll stay with Gideon." Nick's heart fell, the balloon in his chest deflating forever. "No, please. Carrots-_ Judy _, I love you."_

 _"_ _It's over, Nick."_

Nick awoke with a start as he sat up in bed, gasping for air. His fur was matted from the cold sweat his nightmare had caused and his ribs ached from his heavy breathing. It was the middle of the night and the room was dark, only dimly lit by the moonlight that filtered through the partially open curtains. "Nick? What's going on?" Judy carefully sat up and placed a paw on Nick's arm. Nick glanced down at her abdomen and sighed before looking back up into her tired eyes. "Nothing, just a nightmare."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, it's okay. Go back to sleep, Carrots."

"Nick…" Her voice was soothing, yet worried. Her tone alone brought a small smile to Nick's face. "I'm fine… really. Go back to sleep."

"You need to sleep too."

"I will, I'm just going to go and get a glass of water first." Trying not to disturb Judy anymore than he already had, Nick quietly slipped out from under the sheets and carefully crept from the room. From the corner of his eye, he saw Judy lean back into the bed and snuggle back into the blankets just before he exited the room. Nick and Judy had been set up in a guest bedroom at Judy's family burrow for the night, but not until Stu had finished making several jokes about the two sharing a bed. Nick had laughed with the rabbit, but still felt as if the jokes held partial truth. Nick thought about these jokes as he quietly crept around the burrow, trying not to wake the hundreds of baby bunnies. Once in the kitchen, he turned on the sink and filled a glass of water. With a heavy sigh, he turned around to find a bedhead bunny standing by the kitchen table. "GAH!"

 _CRASH!_

"Jesus Christ, Judy!" Nick quickly covered his mouth with a paw before dropping his volume down to a whisper. "Warn me!"

"Warn you?"

"Cough or something! Announce your presence!" Judy glanced down at the wet kitchen floor that was littered with glass shards. Her eyebrows rose as she looked back up at Nick. "That's the third thing you've broken in the last few months. That cup isn't even ours."

"I blame you."

"You would," Judy scoffed as she reached up and lightly smoothed her ruffled fur. Nick grabbed a small towel from a nearby kitchen drawer and threw it down onto the wet floor. "I thought you were asleep."

"I was worried about you."

"So you thought scaring me would help?" Judy giggled. "I didn't mean to scare you!" she exclaimed with a smile. Nick smiled back at her before directing his attention to the digital clock on the stove. "Ugh, is that really the time?" Judy then looked over at the clock and let an over exaggerated look of disgust dawn on her face. It was 2:00 AM. She shrugged. "It's not too bad."

"It's too late. I say we fake illness and cancel our activities for today and just go home."

"We aren't canceling," Judy chuckled. "It'll be fun."

"Pie at Gideon's bakery, yeah, sounds like a blast." Sarcasm heavily dripped across Nick's words. At lunch the previous day, Gideon had dropped by to bring the Hopps family a pie to share that night. He and Judy chatted for a while, leading to Gideon inviting both her and Nick to visit his bakery sometime before they left Bunnyburrow. Judy accepted happily, of course. At the thought of Gideon, Nick shivered slightly as the dream flashed through his memory briefly. Judy noticed his change in facial expression as the shiver went down his spine. "What was that?"

"Nothing." Judy thumped her foot quietly. "What was your nightmare about?"

"Just stuff."

"Stuff like what?"

"Stuff like you."

"What about me?"

"Just stuff, I don't know."

"Nick…" There it was again; the tone that made Nick want to tell Judy everything in seconds. Nick took a deep breath and ran a paw over his face. "I had a nightmare that you left."

"That I left?"

"You know… _left_."

"Oh." Judy's face fell, but she quickly regained composure and took Nick's paw in her own. "I won't leave, Nick. You don't have to be worried about that."

"I'm not worried about it, but that nightmare obviously wasn't great." Judy nodded thoughtfully. "We're still going today, though." At this, Nick groaned dramatically before pretending to die by slumping on the floor. "Always the theatrics," Judy sighed before sauntering back to their room. After pulling himself off of the floor and then cleaning up the mess that the shattered glass of water had left, Nick followed her. The two talked for a little while, mostly argued about going to Gideon's bakery or not, and then fell asleep. They were awoken a few hours later by the squeals of the first baby bunnies awake for the day. "Nooo," Nick groaned as Judy pulled on his arms, out of breath from the effort. "I don't want to go," he whined. Judy rolled her eyes and made a noise of disgust, throwing her arms up in defeat as she did so. "Fine, stay in bed. I'll go to the bakery myself." Nick popped up from the bed immediately. "I'm up." Judy laughed and pushed him back onto the bed before lying down on top of him and giving him a very passionate kiss on the lips, which Nick accepted gratefully.

It didn't take long for the two to get ready for the day and to pack their things, but Nick complained the entire time, making Judy giggle when he did. They were planning to say goodbye to Judy's family, go and visit Gideon at his bakery for a few hours, and then leave Bunnyburrow afterward. They were hoping to be home sometime in the evening so they could have the rest of the night for themselves and get ready for the beginning of their week. It only took them an hour and a half to be completely ready to go, and once they were ready, they stood just outside of the front door of the burrow and bid everyone farewell. "You call us if you need anything."

"We will, Mom."

"And call us soon, or visit."

"Okay, Dad."

"I would tell you to watch out for predators, especially foxes, but you've taken care of that," Stu chuckled as he gave Nick another heavy pat on the shoulder. Nick smirked and laughed along with him, while Judy looked bashful. "You ready, Carrots?" Judy nodded before giving her parents one more final hug. Leaving Judy's parents at the door, the two trucked out to their parked SUV, where Nick helped Judy up into the car. "Oh, hold on, I forgot something," Nick muttered before jogging back to where Judy's parents stood in the entryway of their home. Her parents looked on with puzzled expressions as he jogged toward them, wondering what had happened. "Mr. Hopps. Mrs. Hopps," Nick greeted them with a smile. "I plan on proposing to Judy on her birthday in a couple of months. I'm throwing a party at our house and inviting friends and family. I just thought I would let you know." At this, Bonnie and Stu smiled. "We'll be there," Stu said as the couple brought Nick in for a hug. Nick then jogged back to the SUV and waved to Judy's parents as he got into the car. Judy waved and smiled back at her parents as Nick pulled the car out onto the main road that ran through Bunnyburrow. It was a very short ride until they were pulling into a parking space just outside of a small shop that was striped in lavender and white colors. "Here we are," Judy grinned as she hopped out of the car without Nick's help. Nick followed, opening the door of the shop for her once he caught up. The inside of the bakery was filled with animals who sat at various little circular tables and booths that were scattered about, and the entire environment smelled of baked goods. Gideon was standing behind the counter that sat in the middle of the shop, serving a pie to an elderly grandmother rabbit. When he saw Judy and Nick (mainly just Judy), a large smile dawned on his face and he waved to greet them. The fox then set out a sign that read "ON BREAK" and came out from behind the counter to officially greet them. "Judy, it's good to see ya. Thank ya for stopping by."

"No problem at all. You've met Nick."

"I sure 'ave," Gideon smiled as he shook Nick's paw. Nick didn't smile back, but he returned the shake. Gideon then led the couple to a booth somewhat near the back of the bakery. He slid in on one side while Judy and Nick slid in opposite. "How have you been Gideon?"

"I've been good. How about ya?"

"Pretty good. We recently moved to a new home, which is pretty exciting."

"Sounds fun. Say Judy, I 'ave to say that I was pretty surprised when ya called."

"How come?"

"We didn't exactly get 'long as kids, ya know."

"That was the past, Gideon. I wanted to see you again, since it's been so long."

"I sure am sorry, though. About the scratches, that is."

"I know, but you don't have to be sorry." Gideon smiled gratefully. Judy then asked when he had acquired the bakery and had begun the business, which Gideon happily replied to, but Nick was no longer listening; he was wondering about what exactly happened between Gideon and Judy when they were children. Judy had told him that Gideon had bullied her for being prey, and that he had scratched her one day. The scars from his attack were barely visible on Judy's face now, but they were still there, and Nick saw them every time he leaned in to kiss her. Nick wasn't wondering about this, though, he was more concerned with other details, like how Judy reacted to Gideon when he had scratched her and what led to him scratching her exactly. Nick became lost in thought as he wondered over these minute things. On the trip to Bunnyburrow, Judy had been convinced that Nick was jealous of Gideon, and granted, Nick hadn't done such a fantastic job to lead her away from that idea, but he honestly wasn't jealous. Nick was more worried about Judy's safety then anything, so he wasn't jealous, but rather very concerned. He knew that it had been a very long time since Gideon had done anything violent, but he still didn't like the idea of putting his pregnant girlfriend in any possibly dangerous scenario. Yes, in the car he had reacted somewhat negatively by stopping the vehicle completely, but this was only because of his worrisome ways. Who could blame him? His girlfriend had been in danger several other times before, and now that she was pregnant, it only gave him more reason to watch out for her. Even when he had asked what Gideon's profession was, he only wanted to know to make sure that it wasn't a profession that was physically building; he had been glad to hear "baker." Nick briefly tuned back into the conversation to here Judy talking about the babies. "I gotta say, Judy, hearing that ya're dating a fox was a bit surprising to me."

"Nick and I have been good friends for a very long time."

"Just about four years," Nick cut in. Judy looked at him, shocked that he had said anything at all, but then smiled and allowed the conversation to continue. After some conversing, Nick found that he actually liked Gideon; he seemed put together and an overall nice fox. In the end, Nick was kind of disappointed that the chatting couldn't continue, but they did have to leave or they would get home much too late. Saying goodbye to Gideon, the couple got back into the SUV and began their journey home.

On the way home, the two laughed and joked as they listened to music and told stories from the past. It was one of those blissful moments where Nick enjoyed seeing Judy's dazzling smile, and Judy loved to hear Nick's laugh when he found something extremely funny. They were just two animals in love, with four babies on the way and nothing to make their world shake. Until they got home that is. Nick was in the driveway of their home, unloading their luggage from the backseat. Judy had fallen asleep about thirty minutes before they had arrived home, so Nick had carefully carried her upstairs and laid her in bed. He was doing a final check of the car to make sure they had removed all of their personal belongings when a dark colored bag was thrown over his head, instantly blinding him as the world went dark.


	18. Chapter 18

Judy woke up the next morning with a smile on her face. It was becoming more and more difficult to sleep with her growing abdomen; she often woke up several times throughout the night, but she had actually slept fairly well after the weekend visit to her parents' home. She hopped out of bed and noticed that Nick was missing. " _Probably fell asleep watching TV on the couch again_ ," Judy thought with a sigh and a shake of her head. She made the bed, smoothing the covers as she did so, before picking out an outfit for the day – a little blue sundress – and then heading to the bathroom to take a nice hot bath. She was ready for her day about half an hour later.

"Nick? You down here?" Judy called as she carefully waddled down the stairs. The house was silent, making worry creep into Judy's heart. " _Okay, maybe he went to get coffee_?" Judy considered as she made her way to the kitchen. Once there, she looked out the window and was shocked to see that their SUV was still parked in the driveway, the trunk of the car left open. Judy swallowed hard, now very worried. She left the kitchen and headed down the hall to the front door, but stopped suddenly when she saw that it was wide open, swinging eerily back in forth in the day's light breeze. Stepping carefully, Judy approached the door and looked out into the yard. "Nick?" she called, but there was still no reply. Judy then quickly shut the front door, locking the deadbolt as she did so. "Okay," she exhaled, her breathing hitched. "I think it's time to call someone." Judy then quickly did a sweep of the bottom floor of the house, making sure Nick, or anyone else, wasn't present, but didn't find anything. She then made her way upstairs and did the same thing on the top floor before grabbing her cell phone and dialing Nick's cell phone number, praying for an answer. The line rang for a few moments before sending her to voicemail. "Nick? Where are you? The front door was wide open and the car trunk was open too, so I'm a little freaked out…" Judy said as she made her way back downstairs and toward the living room. "I'm going to go ahead and call the police, but please call me back if you can and reassure me that you aren't hurt." Judy ended the call, looking down as she did so, just as she walked into the living room.

Due to the house's setup, the first floor consisted of the kitchen being closer to the front of the house, while the living room was toward the back, all connected with a single hallway that led to the front door and a large bathroom. The living room was the only room in the house that led to the backyard, which was fenced in. There was a large sliding glass door in the far wall of the living room, opposite of where Judy entered, and it was surrounded by a few square feet of tiled floor on the inside and a large wooden patio on the outside. After Judy had ended the call, she looked up, her vision directly meeting the backyard from her view through the glass door, and the sight that met her made her gasp and drop her phone on the carpeted floor with a soft thump.

Things moved very fast after Nick had the bag thrown over his head. He had felt several paws snag him and throw him into what he assumed was a vehicle that was not his own. He had yelled out in surprise, but it was useless, as he was in the vehicle in seconds, which was now speeding away, and could feel rope tying his paws back behind him. His thoughts immediately flew to Judy, who was still asleep upstairs, completely defenseless with both the SUV and the house left unlocked and unattended. Nick fought back and struggled, but someone much stronger than him held him down easily in the backseat of the vehicle that was now his prison for the time being. Nick began to think, breaking down the basics. " _They were waiting for us, there must have been a car parked across the street from the house or else I would have heard them pull up_ … _They knew we were on a trip_ … _They've been watching us_ … _I don't have my tranq gun_ … _Judy has hers in her nightstand, next to her phone, but can she get to it in time? Are they going to take her too or do something worse? Oh God, please let her and the babies be okay_ …" His thoughts were interrupted when he felt the vehicle come to a stop. He strained his ears for any voice or sound that might be a tip off to what was going on, but heard nothing. He had no idea of what was happening or what he would do; he didn't even know what type of car he was in, and it was clear that he was outnumbered with at least one animal who was much stronger than him. He then felt paws on him again as he was dragged from the vehicle. He struggled again and yelled out for help, threatening anyone nearby with choice words. "You touch my wife and I will personally _hunt you down_! You hear me? _Huh_? You made a _big_ mistake buddy, I'm a cop! You're in for it!" Nick could feel grass brush against his feet and legs as he was dragged for what he thought was at least four or five meters before he was thrown onto the ground. Someone grabbed him roughly and forced him up onto his knees. " _Execution style_ ," he thought with horror, secretly beginning to pray for Judy's safety once he was gone. "Funny, I thought Judy hadn't tied you down with a ring just yet," a rough voice chuckled. Nick's breath caught quickly, the balloon in his chest causing discomfort. " _They know her name_ ," he thought. Then, Nick grinned and even laughed as he recognized the voice. "Are you freaking kidding me right now, Finnick?" A loud noise that sounded like hundreds of cheers met Nick's ears just before the bag was pulled from his head and he was suddenly face to face with his best con artist friend. Finnick was grinning, clearly proud of himself, and he was surrounded by dozens of animals, all cheering and hooting. Nick sighed heavily and laughed even harder as he shook his head. "You almost gave me a heart attack, man!" He looked around and noticed that they were in some kind of amusement park, and that only his friends were there. Finnick cut the rope from Nick's paws and let him stand. Once on his feet, Nick finally began to recognize those present. Finnick, Mr. Big and his henchmen, Weaselton, and all of his male work friends were there. "Guess you're the one stronger than me," Nick laughed as he recognized the Chief. "Was I ever not, Wilde?" Finnick came back into view with a bottle of beer. "We think Dad deserves one last party before his responsibilities come in," the fennec fox laughed as he handed over the bottle. Nick rolled his eyes. "A Bachelor Party?"

"Think of it more as a Baby Shower for Dad," Delgato laughed. Nick took a long sip from the bottle and threw his hands up, making everyone cheer. From then on, things became blurry as the party began and the drinks were thrown back.

Judy almost cried as she saw the massive party in her backyard. Every inch of her yard was covered in streamers and balloons colored pink and blue. Nick's mother caught her eye and quickly ran over, opening the sliding glass door to greet her. "Mrs. Wilde?"

"Judy, come here!"

"What is going on?"

"A Baby Shower, of course, Honey!" Judy laughed and sighed at how silly she must have seemed moments before when she was so worried. "Where's Nick?"

"Oh, he's caught up in his own little party. Trust me, though, there's a reason these type of things are only for women," Nick's mother smiled with a wink. Judy followed her into the backyard, where several animals called out in greeting. Judy waved and smiled, noticing that Fru Fru and her babies were there, as well as her female coworkers, her mother, Nick's mother, and the majority of her bunny sisters. There were tables set up around the yard; gifts on a couple of them, food on the rest. For the next few hours, Judy was showered in gifts and food, as well as congratulatory remarks as everyone told her stories about their own kids and gave her advice. There was also quite a bit of gossip as the women talked about everything that had to do with babies, marriage, and of course, Nick. When the party dispersed, Nick's mother and Bonnie remained to help Judy cleanup the backyard after she had thanked everyone and shown them out. Finally, Judy's mother had to say goodbye to make the long journey home, which left Nick's mother and Judy to put away the new things that Judy had acquired. It wasn't until about 1:00 in the afternoon that the two heard a car screech to a stop in front of the house. The two looked out of the window to witness a group of completely drunk males trying to help an even more drunk Nick get out of the car. "Oh Lord," Judy sighed at the sight.

Nick's mother chuckled. "I should probably leave you to deal with him. If I even talk to him, I'll end up beating him with a skillet."

Mrs. Wilde helped Judy out onto the front porch of the house just in time to meet Nick, who was staggering and nearly crawling. Judy thanked Mrs. Wilde as she took hold of Nick and directed him into the house. She led him to the kitchen, where she sat him down on the floor against one of the walls. "Heyyyy," he slurred at her once they were situated.

"You are going to have alcohol poisoning," Judy scoffed as she struggled to sit down on the floor next to him.

"I'm…I'm who-no, wait…Oh! I'm sorry, _that's_ what I meant. I was…uh…what was I doing?"

"You were at your own little Baby Shower, or your Bachelor's Party; there really is no difference. Your mother told me all about it."

"Ahhhhhh, of course!" Nick drunkenly threw his paws into the air as if everything in the world finally made sense.

Judy rolled her eyes. "You're unbelievable."

"And you're _cute_ ," Nick hiccupped as he tapped Judy's nose. Judy chuckled lightly before gently pushing him back against the wall. She then got up and found a glass to put some ice water in for Nick. When she returned with it, he drank it happily, nearly spilling it three different times. When he was done, she took the glass to refill it, but Nick stopped her with a tug on her arm just as she was standing up.

"H-hey, we have to-have to… talk." Eyebrows furrowed, Judy carefully sat back on the floor and waited for him to continue. He hiccupped once more and ran a paw over his face before sighing loudly, as if he didn't want to say what he was thinking. "I…I don't think-we can't…it's o-over."

"Nick, what are you talking about?"

"I-I'm leaving…it's doesn't work a'more."

" _What_ exactly doesn't work anymore?"

"You-or me-or…I can't remember."

"Are you saying we don't work anymore?"

Nick gestured to his nose, as in "yes, that's it exactly." Judy's breath caught in her throat. Surely he was too drunk to know what he was saying. He wouldn't actually leave her, not after all of this time…right? The doubt remained, nagging Judy as she sat on the kitchen floor staring at her drunken boyfriend. How could this happen? Weren't they happy? Hadn't they always been happy? " _No_ ," Judy thought. " _We haven't_ always _been happy, but that's because we have fought like a normal couple. That doesn't justify this, does it_?" Tears were stinging her eyes, but she refused to cry. After all, Nick was drunk and she could be completely overreacting.

"Nick-"

"Shhh," Nick stated in a wavering tone as he sat up and put a paw to her mouth to silence her.

"Don't-don't make me stay-don't make me stay. I…have to go 'cause-I just have to go."

"Why do you have to go, Nick?"

"'Cause you-you don't care-you don't care 'bout me. I don't trust you-you just do whatever-whatever you want." Judy bit back her tears as she listened to him, even more confused. She had always cared, hadn't she? Nick had always trusted her, hadn't he?

"Nick, I care about you."

"No, no, no, no. I know-okay, I know 'bout the money."

"The money?"

"The-the money you took from Fin."

"From Finnick? Nick, I never took any money from Finnick." Nick sighed as if he were a child being ignored. "Fin told me, Val. I know 'bout-'bout the money."

Judy chuckled lightly, now wiping the tears from her eyes in relief.

"Val… Nick, I'm not Valerie."

"You're-you're not?"

"No, Honey, I'm not," Judy laughed as she scooted across the floor so that she was leaning up against the wall next to him. He was watching her closely, clearly not knowing her identity. Judy reached out and brought his face closer to hers. "I'm Judy, Nick. You know? Judy. Judy Hopps. Carrots?"

"Where's Valerie?"

"She's gone, Nick. You broke up with her a long time ago." Nick nodded, seemingly mulling this over. "Do-do you miss her, Nick?" Judy instantly regretted her words, but she wanted to know. Nick shook his head a little harder than he needed to.

"No, she's mean," he replied in slurred words. Judy laughed and kissed his cheek.

"I'm sorry you didn't trust her."

Nick just shrugged heavily before looking down at the floor.

In that moment, Judy had a very strong look into Nick's world, something she rarely had. Judy and Nick had always been almost completely opposite, and when they understood each other, it was something truly special. Judy was very open, so for Nick, knowing how she felt on a daily basis was easy. The only thing Nick ever had to decipher about her was that she didn't like getting hurt in such a way that it restricted or limited her, which wasn't very hard either. Nick, however, was a complex character who simply smirked and let on a show that he was always fine when he really wasn't. Judy had learned that he had had pain in his life when he had told her the story of being muzzled for the first time, which she was more than grateful to know, but it was all she knew; she didn't know Nick's dreams or passions. Now, though, she got another peak into Nick's world as it became apparent that Valerie was not just another ex, she was _the_ ex; the ex that would always bother Nick because she had broken his heart after she had built him up to believe that they were perfect for each other. In that moment, Judy felt bad for thinking that he would ever do anything with Valerie, because only someone ignorant would think that. If she had really thought about it, she would have realized that Valerie had caused Nick so much pain that Nick wouldn't even _think_ about her in that way ever again. Nick had only smiled and gone along with everything because that's just who he was.

Judy leaned in and kissed Nick on the cheek again, only pulling away to lean on his shoulder comfortably. "I love you, Nick."

"Who are you 'gain?"

Judy couldn't help but laugh. "I'm Judy."

"Right…Carrot?"

"It's _Carrots_ , but yeah, that's me."

"I love you, Carrot." Judy smiled and snuggled closer to Nick.

"Are we-are we dating?" Nick hiccupped.

Judy grinned again, truly amused. "We actually are going to get married." At this, Nick's eyes widened considerably.

"Really?" he asked as sat up and looked at Judy. Judy nodded.

"Wow," he breathed. "You're-you are-you're super hot."

"Ha, thank you."

" _How_ …did I-I get _you_?"

"You basically got me pregnant." Nick's eyes widened again.

"You're-really?" Judy rolled her eyes as she watched Nick's reaction, but nodded in reply. It was as if she was telling him the news all over again. Nick ran both of his paws over his face in disbelief.

"Here," Judy smiled as she grabbed one of Nick's paws and placed it on her swollen abdomen. Nick's face instantly lit up at the contact. Just then, Judy felt a small strip of pain shoot across her abdomen. She winced slightly, caught off guard, but ignored it.

"Let's get you to bed, Nick."


	19. Chapter 19

"Nick?"

"I'm in the shower!" Judy had been in the babies' room, folding tiny clothes and putting them in the dresser drawers when her phone had buzzed for what seemed to be the hundredth time that day, even though it was only late morning. It was Clawhauser, of course, replying to Judy's last text message. It had been five weeks since the Baby Shower, and Judy was now twenty-five weeks along in her pregnancy. It was becoming more difficult to do simple things such as sleep, walk, or even sit, but she was starting to grow somewhat used to it. Nick found the entire thing hilarious since he was not required to go through any of it, but Judy didn't mind that either; she knew he cared deep down. It had also been five weeks since Nick's "night out" that had caused him a hangover that had lasted late into the following day. Judy babied him while he endured the headaches and the vomiting, but she also made sarcastic comments because that was what he deserved after being so irresponsible. They never spoke of that night, though, which hadn't bothered Judy until this morning. She had told Nick all about her baby shower after his hangover had disappeared, but he barely said two words about his over the last five weeks, which made Judy incredibly suspicious. She had actually forgotten all about it until that morning when she was texting Clawhauser (as usual), and he mentioned the party. Surprised that Clawhauser would be at such a party when he almost never drinks alcohol, Judy had then asked if he had been present, which he responded to in the affirmative, pushing Judy to then ask what exactly happened that night. When she heard her phone vibrate on top of the dresser, Judy picked it up and saw that as a reply, Clawhauser had sent several different photos, all picturing Nick that night. Once she saw it, she called out to Nick, who just happened to be in the shower. She was in the bathroom in minutes, wrenching the glass shower door open. "Whoa, Carrots! I'm showering here!"

"Oh, it's nothing I haven't seen! Quit acting like a teenager!" Nick put his hands up in defense. "Okay, is something wrong-"

"What the hell is this?" Judy held out the phone and showed Nick one of the pictures she had been sent. The photo depicted a beyond wasted Nick heavily entranced by a gazelle stripper in the most scandalous of positions. At the sight of the photo, Nick's face lost all of its color. "Thought so," Judy scoffed before swiping to the next picture. "How about this one?" This time, the photo had captured Nick when he was getting a tattoo done by a very unofficial looking tiger in a very unsanitary place. Nick gulped loudly, turning away from Judy slightly so she wouldn't see the tattoo that was set in between his shoulder blades. She noticed. "Let me see the tattoo, Nick." Nick swallowed hard again. "What tattoo?"

"The one I know is on your back. Turn around." Wincing as he did so, Nick turned, revealing a somewhat small tattoo of a carrot on his back. Judy choked back a laugh. "I might let that one slide since it's kind of adorable." Nick sighed in relief. "Carrots, it was just one party-"

"Oh, I'm not done yet. Here," Judy swiped to another photo on her phone. "This one is my personal favorite." The third photo shown pictured a drunken Nick and a drunken Delgato in a brief lip lock, one Judy was sure neither would have remembered, but entertaining nonetheless. Nick looked like he might pass out. The water was still running, and Judy now took the liberty of reaching in and shutting it off. She then gave Nick a very sour look before resting both of her paws on her lower back. "You want to tell me about your night now, Nick? I'm very interested to hear about the stripper."

"Where did you get these?"

"Clawhauser." Nick shook his head in disbelief. "Clawhauser wasn't even there…was he?"

"Oh, he was there, and he was very _sober_ , unlike you. I'm about to buy him a box of donuts for sending me these."

"I might just poison them," Nick muttered, not really angry, but definitely not excited. "Tell me about the stripper."

"It was a Bachelor Party, of course there was a stripper there, Carrots."

"I get that, but why was she on top of you?"

"She wasn't on top of me-"

"I've got more pictures, Nick, and let me just say, I am very surprised about what she puts in her mouth." This time, Nick's face flushed a deep shade of red; it was the first time Judy had ever seen Nick blush from being completely embarrassed. "Y-you don't have pictures of that."

"Oh, you bet I do."

"I was drunk-"

"Trust me, I know."

"And I'm very sorry-"

"You know, I should put these pictures into a collage, print them, and then frame them. _Then_ I'll hang them in the kids' room," Judy snickered. "Delgato looks like a good kisser."

"Do not tell him!"

"Then again, so does this stripper." Nick blushed again, making Judy smile. "Relax, I'm not mad and I'm not going to make a big deal about it or bring it up ever again."

"Really?"

"Yep." Nick let out another sigh of relief. "Thank you…wait, what's the catch?"

"You have to rub my feet every night before bed until the babies are born."

"And you promise never to bring it up again?"

"Promise."

"Deal." Nick and Judy shook paws. Judy then leaned in and gave Nick a kiss on the cheek before turning the shower back on. On her way out of the bathroom, she reached over and flushed the empty toilet, making boiling hot water filter into Nick's shower. Nick yelped out in surprise, which Judy grinned evilly at before heading down to the kitchen to start making lunch. She was making them sandwiches when she felt an awkward feeling in her abdomen. It was a small amount of pressure in one spot that lasted for a few seconds, then stopped, but then picked up again in a different spot. It wasn't like the pain that Judy had experienced the day of the baby shower, even though she had experienced that pain a few times since then. She had decided not to tell Nick about that incident, since the pain wasn't too bad and she didn't feel the need to worry him. She had a doctor's appointment coming up anyhow, so she would be able to find out soon enough. This new feeling, though, wasn't necessarily pain, but more discomfort than anything. The feeling started to pick up slightly, the spots of pressure either growing or happening more often. Then, Judy felt a very strong amount of pressure that made her grit her teeth. She put the mustard bottle she had been holding in one paw down onto the counter and placed that paw on her lower back, closing her eyes through the pressure. She was still holding a plate that had a few of the finished sandwiches on it. When the spot of pressure happened again at the same intensity, Judy realized exactly what was happening.

 _SMASH!_

" _Nick!_ "

"Judy?" Nick came sprinting from the bathroom, his fur still drenched from showering. The water was still running; steam now easily escaping the open bathroom. At this rate, their water bill was going to be ridiculous. Judy was standing in the kitchen with a huge grin plastered across her face. A small white plate lay in shards on the tile floor beside her, a few sandwiches in pieces on the floor near the plate. "What's going on?" Nick asked nervously, holding his towel around his slender waist. "I just felt a kick."

"You what?"

"I felt a kick, Nick! Come here!" Nick walked over and carefully placed a paw to her abdomen. "I don't feel anything-"

"Just wait a minute." Nick waited patiently, his soaking wet fur dripping water onto the tiled floor. It was almost two minutes later when Nick felt a shift and a nudge under his paw, making him look up at a beaming Judy. "Oh my God… is that—?"

"Yes!"

"Wow, those-those are our kids!"

"I know!" Nick glanced down at the plate shattered on the floor. "We have got to stop dropping things."

"We only drop things when something really unexpected happens."

"Exactly," Nick chuckled. Judy smiled and placed a paw on her abdomen next to Nick's, feeling the kicks from a different perspective. The couple stood there for a long time, enjoying the moment, until Judy cleared her throat. "Nick, where are your clothes?"

"Crap, the shower!" Nick sprinted upstairs to shut the water off and quickly dry off before getting dressed in a hurry so that he could feel the babies kicking again. When he came back down, he was fumbling with his Hawaiian shirt, trying to untangle it. Judy chuckled as she watched his antics. "Do you need help?"

"No," Nick laughed. "I've got it-" A soft tinkling sound filled the kitchen as Nick flipped his shirt over and something fell from his shirt pocket down onto the tiled floor. Judy watched the object roll a few inches before it came to a stop between them. "Is that-" Judy bent over and reached for the object. "Judy, wait, I don't want you to see it just yet." Judy gaped at the ring and then at Nick. "You've had this in your shirt pocket the whole time?" Nick nodded. "I'm sorry, you weren't supposed to see it yet."

"It's gorgeous," Judy grinned. "It's absolutely gorgeous." Nick smiled too, but then faltered slightly. "I wasn't going to propose for a while."

"When are you planning on doing it?" Nick hesitated, which made Judy giggle. "Oh, come on, you can tell me, Nick!" Nick stepped forward and took the ring from her paws. "If I do something right now, do you promise to wait until I actually propose?"

"But when are you going to propose?"

"Soon, I promise, but I want it to be a surprise."

"Okay. What are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to show you, but I'm going to hide the ring after I do it. This time, it won't be in my shirt pocket so you won't go looking for it." Judy smiled at his joke. "Okay, what are you going to do now?" Nick took a deep breath. "This," he replied as he bent down on one knee, the ground still covered in broken plates and sandwiches. Judy put a paw to her mouth, tears instantly filling her eyes. Nick smiled and tried to fight back tears himself. "Carrots, will you marry me?" Tears were streaming down Judy's cheeks now. She held back a sob as she bent down and hugged him the best she could with her growing abdomen. "Yes!"


	20. Chapter 20

"Carrots, we've known each other for almost four years now, and every moment of it has just been absolutely perfect, so now, I need to ask: will you marry me?"

"Oh, how sweet! No."

"Finnick, please take this seriously."

"I am; she could say 'no' at any time."

"She's not going to say 'no'," Nick stated with a roll of his eyes as he stood up from bent knee. Finnick was standing in the back of his open van, watching Nick practice the perfect proposal. This was the tenth time the two had gone through the same rehearsal. Finnick reached out and slapped the side of Nick's head. "Of course she's not going to say 'no,' you moron! You already proposed in your kitchen!" Nick gave him a nasty look as he reached up and rubbed the sore spot on his head. "That wasn't the big thing, though, man. Tomorrow's the big deal and I want everything to be perfect. I promised that this would be a big deal for her, so I have to make sure everything runs smoothly."

"Is that why I'm wearing a dress?" Nick snickered as he looked over Finnick, who was wearing his usual clothes with a yellow sundress roughly pulled over them. "You had to be in character."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Finnick snapped bitterly. He then wiggled out of the dress in the most ungraceful way possible and threw the material in Nick's face. Nick just pulled the dress off of himself and smirked. "Look man, you know this is important."

"Nick, you don't need to practice. Anything you say is going to be perfect to her."

"I don't know that, though-"

"Dude, she's madly in love with you _and_ she's pregnant; the situation couldn't get more ideal!"

"I guess you have a point there," Nick chuckled. "You're going to be there, right?"

"I've got nothing better to do." Finnick brought Nick in for a side arm hug before Nick left, turning out of the alley that Finnick's van was parked in and walking down the sidewalk of Main Street. It took a few minutes, and Nick thought he would die from the heat, but he eventually strolled his way right into the lobby of the ZPD. The lobby was silent, not even Clawhauser was at the reception desk, but that's what Nick expected. He continued walking until he pushed through the door to the assignment room. The small room was packed with animal officers, including Clawhauser and the Chief; every officer of the ZPD was in that room, except Judy.

Nick had had to pull several strings and play his cards just right to work everything out, but he had managed to keep Judy at home for one day while he prepped for her 28th birthday party that would take place at their house the following night. Nick had been planning this party for a very long time, but things didn't start really going into effect until after Nick had secretly proposed to Judy in their kitchen on a sunny early afternoon almost five weeks ago. For the Wilde-Hopps household, things were beginning to speed up. Judy's pregnancy was progressing normally with no issues, but it felt like things were going so fast. In just another five weeks or so, Judy would no longer be attending work. Her maternal leave annoyed her, but Nick wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. He had been patient and kind, but at eight months, she was coming home and staying home.

Nick strolled through the center aisle that split the room, right up to the podium that commanded the area. Once there, Nick recognized the Chief with a nod. "Quiet!" the Chief barked. All attention was on Nick, who had been planning this since the moment he knew he was going to marry Judy. "Alright, everyone, as you may know, tomorrow is Judy's 28th birthday." Most of the officers hooted and cheered at this, but Nick continued. "You all know her, because she's…well, she takes her job very seriously."

"That's an understatement!"

"Delgato! Be quiet!" the Chief snapped at the lion. Delgato snickered, but sat down and obeyed. "Delgato gets it," Nick chuckled. "But anyway, you all know that the party is tomorrow night at our place. I'll be proposing at the end of the night-" This time, the entire room was filled with hoots and cheers that all showed the officers approval. Nick couldn't help but smile, and tried to continue over the noise. "A little bit later, I will assign someone to keep Judy busy tomorrow. I've already spoken to the officers setting up the party at the house tomorrow, so you know what to do. Judy's parents are coming into town and will come here until the party. No matter who is in charge of keeping Judy busy, she is the number one priority, which means all paws on deck. She gets whatever she wants, and no matter what, don't let her see her parents; she'll know something is up if she sees them. Clear?" The officers nodded in agreement, clearly excited to have a mission that was so laid back and more on the fun side. The Chief dismissed them, leaving Nick to discuss some things with both him and Clawhauser. "Clawhauser, you're in charge of getting all of Judy's friends who don't work at the ZPD here by tomorrow evening."

"Got it."

"Chief, well…you really don't have to do anything."

"I can do something, Wilde."

"Uh…could you keep an eye on Judy?"

"You want me to play babysitter?"

"Just keep her busy. I don't care what you do, just be careful, she's seven months pregnant for God's sake. What ever you do, keep her away from the house and the precinct."

"I'm perfectly capable, Wilde." The growl in the Chief's voice made Nick put his paws up in defense, but deep down, he knew no one was "perfectly capable" of containing a force of nature like Judy. Nick hung around at the ZPD a little bit longer to iron out any possible wrinkles with the officers, but at a quarter to noon, he was forced to leave so that he could meet Judy for lunch at their favorite little diner just down the street. When he arrived, he found Judy seated at a booth near one of the front windows. She was staring outside, taking in the view of the busy city as cars and animals went by. Nick couldn't help but stare. Lately, Judy was almost always in a sundress, since they were easier to wear with her growing abdomen, and no matter how many times she wore a sundress, Nick was always struck by how amazing she looked. Today, she was dressed in a periwinkle blue sundress with straps that joined just behind her neck. She hadn't ordered yet, and in fact, Nick was sure that she hadn't done anything but stare out of the window since she had arrived. At this thought, Nick smiled at how free spirited Judy truly was. "Hey, Carrots," he grinned as he walked over to the booth and slid in opposite of her. She looked up and smiled big. "Hey. How has your day been?"

"Pretty good, yours?"

"Kinda slow, but still pretty good." They were briefly interrupted by a lion waiter arriving to take their order. "The usual, Nick?" Nick nodded, happy that Judy and him had been such loyal customers to the diner that their order was considered "the usual" for them now. Of course, "the usual" consisted of a Veggie Meal for Judy and a Predator Meal for Nick. Once the waiter had left, Nick turned back to Judy. "The Chief wants to see you tomorrow." Judy's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Really? What for?"

"I'm not sure. He just told me he wanted to see you."

"I thought you were with Finnick today, when did you see the Chief?" Nick cursed himself internally for not smoothing that out better. He had told Judy he was going to see Finnick, which had been true, but he had also promised not to go to the ZPD without her, as it was a day off for both of them and Judy didn't like being left behind. "He called me."

"Let me see your phone." Nick held his breath as he knew this wasn't going to end well. "My phone is broken…?"

"Is that a question or a statement?"

"Alright, alright, you got me. I went to the ZPD."

"Dang it, Nick!" Judy sounded agitated, but she laughed and smiled as if she could live with it. "You promised you would take me if you went."

"But I couldn't take you today."

"Why not?"

"I just had paperwork, you would have been bored."

"You hate paperwork. You're lying and I can't figure out why." There was the tone that made Nick want to spill his darkest of secrets to her. Her voice was so sweet and comforting that he just wanted to blurt out, "Hey! I know I already proposed, but I planned this amazing birthday party for you where I plan to propose again in front of our friends and family because that's how much I love you!" Instead, Nick smirked at her lazily and then let out a quiet chuckle. "You got me. I guess my lying skills haven't been too great since I quit hustling."

"So what have you been up to?"

"If I told you, it would ruin it."

"Ruin what?" The waiter saved Nick from answering by arriving with their meals. Judy narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she watched Nick continue to dodge the conversation, but the environment still held a very playful attitude, so she remained patient. It was a few minutes before either spoke again. "Are you going to tell me what you've been up to?"

"You wanna know?"

"Yes."

"I'm cheating on you," Nick shrugged before looking up from his food to see Judy's reaction. At first, Judy had no reaction; she just seemed to be deep in thought. Then, slowly but surely, a large grin broke out on her face. "Does that mean what I think it means?" she giggled. Nick smiled, but evaded again. "It means whatever you want it to mean."

The two finished lunch and then decided to go for a stroll down Main Street, paw in paw. While walking, they laughed and joked about a variety of things. They walked a few blocks before turning around and heading back to their SUV, which Judy had driven to the diner. On their way back, Judy became increasingly tired, so Nick swooped her up into his arms and carried her the rest of the way to the car. Judy giggled the whole way, telling Nick to put her down, but he refused. The rest of the day went by in a fairly boring fashion, as Nick and Judy drove home and then spent the rest of the day watching movies. They cooked and ate dinner together, and then returned to the couch with popcorn to binge more movies. Half way into the second movie after dinner, Judy fell asleep, her head resting on Nick's lap. Nick cleaned up quietly and then carried her upstairs to bed. He straightened up a few other things before crawling into bed himself. In the morning, he was gone long before Judy awoke.

When Judy woke up, she was mildly cranky. The babies had been kicking a lot more lately, causing her more discomfort than pleasure as it began to affect her every day life. When she woke up, the babies were kicking again, and her back hurt more than usual. Things did not get better when she looked over and found that Nick was missing. She didn't care if he was planning a party or not, she just wanted someone to cuddle with in bed. Judy dragged herself from bed and into the bathroom to get ready for the day. She found her frilly white sundress dangling from a hanger that someone had placed on the towel rack in the bathroom. She assumed it was Nick, and was stood correct when she found a little note clipped to one of the dress straps:

" _Thought you would look nice in this today_. _The Chief is picking you up at 10:00_. _I'll see you later tonight_. _Love you_."

Judy found the note sweet, but still grumbled at the fact that she would be forced to do quite a bit of moving around today. It was almost 9:15 now, so Judy got ready for the day and then made her way down to the kitchen to make coffee. A few minutes before 10:00, a heavy knock came at the door. "Come in!" Judy called loudly. The Chief entered the home, looking completely out of place as he made his way down the hall into the kitchen, where he found Judy leaning against a counter, a mug in paw. "Hopps, I'm here to-"

"To distract me for the day while Nick plans a party, I know." The Chief froze momentarily, not sure what to do. "You know?"

"I've known Nick for years, of course I know. Come on, I have some baby shopping to do today." Judy sauntered down the hall to the front door. "You coming?" she asked when she turned and found that the Chief hadn't moved. Still unsure of the situation, the Chief followed. Outside, Judy looked at the Chief expectantly. "Well?"

"'Well' what?"

"I can't get in the car by myself," Judy stated with a roll of her eyes. The Chief, clearly out of his comfort zone, carefully helped the bunny into his police cruiser before going around the front of the car and getting in. He hadn't even started the car before Judy was barking orders of where to go.

At the ZPD, Nick was also barking orders as several other ZPD officers helped him move tables and chairs into the trunks of a few different cars. The plan was that the officers assigned to setting up the party would pack all of the supplies into the designated vehicles, drive to Nick and Judy's home, and take everything through the gate to the backyard, where they would begin to set up. It didn't take long for Nick to help the officers load up the supplies and give them directions, so he soon found himself back inside answering any questions or concerns. Since the moment Nick had left his house, things had been moving at a very rapid pace. Before he knew it, all of Judy's and Nick's friends, with the exception of their coworkers, as well as Judy's family, were at the ZPD, waiting for directions to the house when the time was right. At about 6:30, Nick received a call from Delgato, who was in charge of setting up the party, and received the word that everything was ready. Nick gave directions to the attendees before calling the Chief. "Chief Bogo here."

"Hey, we're ready, where are you guys?" The Chief cleared his voice awkwardly. "Babies 'R' Us." Nick cracked a smile at the thought of a tiny bunny dragging around a large ox as she shopped for baby supplies. "Okay, I'm on my way to pick up Judy." Nick left the ZPD and arrived at the store a few minutes later. When Judy and the Chief exited the store, Nick cracked another smile at the sight; the Chief weighed down by all of Judy's bags and Judy walking in front of him with a pair of sunglasses on and her wallet in paw. Nick jumped out and greeted them, taking the bags from the Chief as he did so, and then helped Judy into their SUV. "You really went all out, didn't you?" Judy asked once they were on their way back to the house. "You have no idea," Nick chuckled. When they pulled into their driveway, Nick grabbed Judy's arm to prevent her from exiting the car just yet. "Hey, I just wanted to let you know that I love you."

"I love you too," Judy smiled. Nick leaned over and kissed Judy, letting the moment last. When he pulled away, he gave her one last smile before getting out of the car and walking over to the passenger side. He opened the door and held out his paw for Judy to take. "You ready?"

"You bet I am."


	21. Chapter 21

"Oh my God." Those were the three words that Judy said when Nick walked her through their gate to their backyard and she finally saw what awaited her. "SURPRISE!" the crowd screamed when they saw the couple. "I brought enough for everyone," Delgato laughed as he stepped forward with two freshly iced beer bottles in his paws. Nick opened his mouth to reject the beer, but Finnick beat him to it. The tiny fennec fox shuffled over quickly, jumped up and grabbed the two bottles, and then gave the lion a sour look. "She's pregnant, and he's right in front of his pregnant girlfriend. Rookie mistake," Finnick chastised as he took a swig from one of the bottles before walking away. Delgato, who had been left in an awkward position, merely shrugged and walked back into the crowd. Nick rolled his eyes and looked over at Judy to see if the situation had upset her, and was presently surprised at what he saw instead. He had seen Judy smile quite a bit in these last few months, but the smile that dawned on her face in that moment might have been the brightest he had ever seen. The surprise birthday party that Judy had thrown for Nick had been big, but this party topped it easily. When putting everything together, Nick had decided to design the party in the way he dreamed his and Judy's party after their wedding would go. He had hired a professional DJ, had installed specific lights for just the right colors, had invited everyone the couple had ever had contact with, had ordered a designer cake, and much more, all for one night. It took a massive dip out of his savings left over from hustling, but he didn't regret one second of it as soon as he saw Judy's smile. It was nearly 7:00 and the party had clearly been in full swing before Judy had even arrived, but she didn't mind one bit. She was such a social bunny that she fit in with the crowd easily, greeting those she saw. Nick followed closely behind, doing the same. They soon found themselves in the center of the yard, surrounding by partygoers. Judy turned to face Nick, who leaned down to hear her. "I can't believe you did all of this for me!" she yelled over the music. Nick couldn't help but smile at how happy she looked. "It was nothing!" he yelled back. "This party makes the one I planned for you look like nothing!" Judy laughed. "I still loved it!" Nick shrugged with a grin. Judy looked around at the party before looking back at Nick. "The neighbors are going to hate us!" Nick shrugged again. "Who needs 'em?" Judy laughed and grabbed his paws in her own, pulling him to dance with her. The night went by a little too quickly for everyone's liking, but that was only because the night was beyond amazing. The cake was cut a little after 9:00 and Nick and Judy had tried to throw their pieces in each other's faces every chance that became available as the crowd yelled "Go! Go! Go!" Judy had won the cake war by faking a baby kick enough that Nick came over, concerned, which was when she had shoved a massive amount of cake and frosting in his face. The crowd had yelled in delight, and Nick, who was completely shocked, wiped the cake off and then shoved the messy paw right in Judy's face. The two had laughed themselves to tears. The rest of the night, Nick and Judy danced until Judy was all tuckered out and Nick had to carry her over to one of the tables that sat close to the DJ. After setting her down, Nick checked his phone and saw that it was nearly midnight. "Smile."

"What?"

"Smile, Carrots."

"Why?"

"Just do it." Judy rolled her eyes, but gave him a gorgeous smile, which he quickly snapped a picture of with the camera on his phone. "Why the picture?" Judy asked once he had lowered his phone. "My new homescreen. Last one I had was from Christmas."

"The one of me stuck in the snow?"

"That's the one."

"Aw, but that one was really cute."

"Relax, Carrots, I still have it, and besides, this one is way cuter." Nick showed Judy his phone, the photo now set as his background. Judy giggled at the photo of her smiling in a silly way with bits of cake and frosting still on her face. "That's not cute at all!"

"I'll change it in a few months," Nick laughed. "When you're laying in a hospital bed holding our four babies." Judy tilted her head and gave him an "aw, how sweet" look. Nick grinned at her before glancing at his phone to check the time again. "I'll be right back," he said as he gave her another smile along with a quick kiss on the lips. Nick stepped up onto the makeshift stage the professional DJ was set up on and thanked the DJ as he handed him a microphone. The music quieted down and all attention was on Nick. The balloon in his chest fluttered with anxiety at the sudden attention, but this was what he wanted, right?

"Uh, hello, everyone. I hope everybody is enjoying the party so far. I would like to start off by thanking all of you for coming tonight, and to especially thank those who helped me pull this off. I, uh…well," Nick paused for a moment, not really sure where to begin out of all of the things he wanted to say next. The silent audience watched with anticipation as the fox ran a paw over one of his ears, smoothing it back momentarily. "Well, I have known Judy for nearly four and half years now. I, uh, met her while I was hustling pawpsicles, ha. She was a meter maid at the time and was upset that I had hustled her," Nick paused to chuckle along with the crowd. "She then hustled _me_ into helping her with a case, uhm, the Night Howlers case, in fact. I didn't want to help her, but somewhere along the line, I, well, I couldn't help but care. I was very intrigued with this little bunny's ambition to solve this case. I mean, she was willing to do anything to find this otter, and even when she was at her busiest, she managed to convince me to join the police force of all things. Without Judy, who knows where I would be now. I surely wouldn't have this many friends, I wouldn't be this happy, and I definitely wouldn't be seeing my mother this often." The crowd laughed again, and Nick caught his mother rolling her eyes. "I, uh, I also wouldn't be with my, uhm, my life mate if Judy and I hadn't crossed paths all that time ago." Nick looked at Judy, who smiled, tears clearly in her eyes. "I knew things were perfect when Judy and I first starting dating, because, well, nothing really felt different; nothing felt forced or awkward, it was just us being us on a new level. About seven months ago, on the night of my birthday party, which many of you attended, Judy told me she was pregnant…and, uh, I won't lie, I was pretty freaked out. I mean, you all saw me that night." Some audience members hooted and cheered in reply, while others laughed. "But I was genuinely happy, because once again, Judy was giving me something that I probably would never have had if I hadn't met her." Nick paused once again, his heart fluttering in his chest as he prepared for the big moment. "A few months after I met Judy, I went out and bought…well, I, uh, bought a wedding ring." Nick removed the wedding ring in question from his shirt pocket and held it up for everyone to see. He had told Judy that he would hide it somewhere different before secretly proposing to her in their kitchen a month ago, but he couldn't bare to part with it after it being with him for so long. Thankfully, Judy hadn't gone looking for it. At the sight of the ring, the audience cheered happily, and Judy covered her mouth with her paws. "I never knew if I would use it, because we weren't even dating at the time, but ever since that day, something inside of me has just _known_ that I would be giving it to her. In about two months, I will have officially been dating Judy for three years. I was going to propose on the night of our anniversary, but something told me that that wasn't right. I knew that if I was going to propose to a girl like Judy, I, uh, well, I was going to have to make a big deal out of it, because she deserves nothing less. To be honest, I proposed to Judy in our kitchen about a month ago, because the ring fell out of my pocket, really." The crowd laughed once again and Nick saw his mother throw her paws up in defeat, as if to say "I thought I raised him right." Nick let out a small laugh and nodded to confirm the fact that he had let the ring fall from his pocket. "So, technically, I know what Judy's answer is, but I just couldn't wait to propose, and I wouldn't have thrown this party if I thought she was anything less than perfect. Judy has given me so much in these last few years, that a lifetime is not enough time to thank her for all of it, but it's a good place to start…" Nick bent down on one knee and looked directly at Judy. "So, Carrots, will you marry me?"

It was as if everyone in the crowd was holding their breath as Judy made her way up to Nick on stage. "Now or never," Nick whispered with a chuckle. Judy returned his smile before leaning down and grabbing the carrot pen she had given him a long time ago from his shirt pocket. "Always the theatrics, Nick, but I'll be honest, I'm marrying you because I like to be a little dramatic now and then too," she whispered, leaving Nick slightly puzzled. She then brought the pen to her mouth as she pressed the "record" button. "Yes." The entire crowd cheered at the very clear word, surely waking the entire city as they did so. "You already knew my answer," Judy giggled as Nick leaned in and kissed her. Nick finally gave her the ring before sweeping her up into a hug. Judy was crying and laughing, not wanting to be anywhere else as she held on to Nick tightly. Nick looked down at her and felt that balloon in his chest inflate in a pleasant way, knowing that all of the time he had waited to propose had been worth it. He didn't care that he had bought the ring too early, that he had waited too long to drop to one knee, that he had almost ruined everything by letting the ring slip into Judy's sight weeks before the actual event, because now the world felt absolutely perfect to him. Nick had never been one to cry often, but he cried now.


	22. Chapter 22

"Who's ready for their last day of work?"

"Shut up."

"Good morning, Sunshine. May I just say you look absolutely stunning this fine morning?" The last comment ended with Nick on the receiving end of a hard punch. "It's not going to be _that_ bad," Nick chuckled as he rubbed his now sore shoulder. The two were in the kitchen, waiting for the coffee maker to finish brewing their morning batch. Nick had awoken that morning to find Judy in a very negative mood, but he didn't let it faze him; it was her last day of work, of course she was going to be in a bad mood. He had gone about his usual morning routine, trying not to get in her way, and had even started the coffee maker for her. Until she had met him in the kitchen, Judy hadn't said a word to him. Judy rolled her eyes before letting out an agitated sigh. "This just-it just… _sucks_! My feet and back hurt like _all_ the time now, and I can't even enjoy the distraction of work since I can't do anything there but sit in an office chair, and I don't even have _that_ after today! I am just-just _so_ angry!" Judy balled her paws into fists and shook them in the air, making Nick recoil slightly, a smirk clearly etched on his face. "Okay, okay, I hear you," Nick stated calmly as he dodged around her fists and placed his paws on her upper arms to calm her down. "But this is just part of it, Carrots. I'm sorry, I really am, but there isn't much I can do-"

" _Useless_!" Judy shrugged Nick off quickly before turning on him. The rabbit moved so fast that she left Nick dazed and confused. "Huh?"

"You're _useless_!"

"What-no I'm not."

"You don't do a thing to help!" Nick placed his paws on his hips and raised his eyebrows. "I think the hours I have spent rubbing your feet would disagree."

"This-this is all your fault!"

"Whoa, back it up, it's whose fault?"

"Yours!"

"Care to explain?"

"You did this to me!" Judy yelled as she struggled to hold her flailing fists down at her sides. "You blame me for your pregnancy?" Nick smirked, which didn't improve Judy's mood at all. "You're the one who got me pregnant!"

"It's kind of a two animal job-"

"Do _not_ make me explain why I'm right and you're wrong!"

"Please, I would love an explanation. Maybe a visual representation too, you know? Like a chart or a diagram, maybe a poster? Oooh, a slideshow would be more professional, though."

" _Nick_!"

"I'm kidding, take it down five notches, Carrots." Judy stopped and fixed Nick with a ferocious stare. Nick replied with a puzzled expression. "What did you just say to me?" Judy hissed. "I told you to calm down, I was just kidding."

" _Unbelievable_!"

"Wha-?"

" _Do not tell me to calm down_!"

"How about we talk about some cutesy stuff, huh? Like how we're getting married, or how we're having kids in about a month."

"I'll talk about that stuff when I'm not completely pissed off!"

"Fair enough. Should we just stand in awkward silence then? I am quite the fan of it, to be honest."

"Give me the car keys." Nick complied immediately, taking the car keys out of his pocket and tossing them to Judy without a word. Slightly surprised he hadn't argued or made a snide comment, Judy caught the keys and glared at him for a few seconds before sighing angrily again. She then left the house without as much as another sigh. From his view through one of the kitchen windows, Nick watched her struggle into the SUV, start the car, and then leave for work. With a shake of his head, Nick let out a soft chuckle, returned to the coffee pot to pour himself a fresh cup, and pulled out his cell phone. He selected the desired contact and placed the phone to his ear, listening to the dial tone patiently until a cheery voice came over the line. "Hey, Clawhauser, can you do me a favor? … Can you pull up the traffic cameras on Main Street? … Got 'em? … Okay, cool, do you see my SUV? … Great. Do you still have access to the traffic lights? … Alright, go ahead and turn them all red … Yeah, and leave them red … For like the next ten minutes … Just trust me on this one … Yeah, I'll explain when I get to work … Yes, Judy's in the car … No, I know she's going to kill me, that's why you're not going to tell her … I will handle it, can you do it? … Awesome, thanks Big Guy, see you soon." Nick ended the call and slid his phone back into his pocket with a smirk. "Two can play this game, Carrots." Smirk still present, Nick turned off the coffee maker, rinsed out his mug, and left the house, locking the front door behind him. He then strolled down the sidewalk of their street until he exited the neighborhood out onto Main Street. The sight that met his eyes brought an evil grin to his face. What could have been the biggest traffic jam in history filled Main Street as every single traffic light remained a monotonous red. Taking his time, Nick weaved between cars as he made his way directly down the center of the street, looking for his SUV as if it was a normal action. He spotted it after a few minutes of looking, and walked right up to the driver's side. Seeing that the door wasn't locked, Nick opened it, making Judy, who had been heavily laying on the car horn, jump in surprise. "Nick!"

"Morning, Beautiful. Scoot over for me?" Still dumfounded by his sudden arrival, Judy slid over into the passenger's seat, letting Nick take control of the car. Not touching the wheel or the gears just yet, Nick took his phone out of his pocket and dialed Clawhauser once more. "Alright, Big Guy, you can fix the lights … Yeah, I'm good … Thanks." Ignoring Judy, who he knew was fuming with rage, Nick put his phone away, waited until traffic resumed, and then flicked on the SUV's police lights. The still partially jammed traffic diverged for the car, giving Nick room to cruise the vehicle down the center of the street. Nick then dared a glance in Judy's direction, which he instantly regretted. Their eyes met briefly before Judy started yelling again. " _Are you kidding me_?"

"Something wrong?" Nick chuckled. Judy threw her arms into the air in frustration. "You just abused so much power, Nick!"

"Yes, but it was super fun."

"I can't believe you did that!"

"Are you done being angry, Rabbit? Or are we going to continue this all day?"

"Continue what all day?"

"I don't know what you want to call it, but if you continue to mess with me, I'm going to continue to mess with you."

"Is that a threat?"

"No, just a fun way to cheer you up." Judy let out a "huh" of thought as she considered what Nick had said. "You're on, Wilde." The car pulled into the parking lot of the ZPD, where Nick parked and then helped Judy out of her seat. The two walked into the building, passed Clawhauser, but not without Nick winking at him first, and then journeyed through the ZPD offices to their cubicles. Before either one sat, Judy turned to Nick with a pout on her face. "Nick, I left my notebook in the car. Could you go grab it for me?"

"Sure thing." Nick turned and made his way back out to the car, whistling as he did so. Once out in the heat of the day, he opened the passenger door and glanced around, not finding Judy's notebook. He then checked the glove compartment, the center console, and the pocket in the door, but still found nothing. Just as he was looking under the seats, a horrible thought entered his head. "She doesn't even have a freaking notebook," Nick muttered angrily as he slammed the car door shut and raced back into the lobby. "Nick? Everything okay?"

"Not now, Clawhauser! Judy's pranking me so hard right now!" Slamming through the glass door that led to the offices and surprising those nearest, Nick ran all the way back to his cubicle. "What did you do?" he gasped as soon as he arrived to find Judy in her own cubicle. "What are you talking about?" she answered in a sickly sweet voice. "Don't play dumb, Cottontail, I know you don't have a notebook." An evil grin dawned on Judy's face as she let out a dry laugh. "I can't believe you fell for that."

"What did you do?"

"I guess you'll just have to figure it out." Nick groaned, still wheezing from running so hard. He trudged into his cubicle, a suspicious eye still watching Judy, and sat down in his swivel chair. The chair collapsed underneath him with a large bang as his weight fell upon it. From his place on the carpeted floor, Nick looked over at a snickering Judy. "Oh, it's on now, Carrots." Judy replied by lightly tossing a small screwdriver over, which landed on Nick's chest. Nick narrowed his eyes at her before she shrugged. "It was already on."


	23. Chapter 23

"Oh my God, they just released the new edition of Carrot Weekly online just now!"

"No way! It doesn't come out for another two weeks!"

"It's early then. Come look, Carrots." Judy struggled to remove herself from her swivel chair, while Nick watched without a word. Once she was on her feet, and somewhat balanced, she waddled over to Nick's cubicle. Her face went from immensely pleased to immensely furious as Nick's computer screen came into view. "That's a selfie of you!"

"Made you look."

"That's not funny!"

"It's pretty funny." Judy punched Nick roughly before waddling back to her own desk, grumbling as she did so. "That's not even a prank, Nick."

"It definitely qualifies."

"How so?" Judy asked indignantly. "It annoyed you, didn't it?" At Nick's smirk, Judy let out a loud angry snort before heaving herself back into her chair. Seated again, she then chose to glare at Nick in the moments following, who simply stared back with a lazy expression. It was only mid-morning, meaning that there was still plenty of time for the two of them to wreak havoc on one another. Unfortunately, that would have to wait for the time being. "Hopps! Wilde!" The Chief's booming voice coming down the aisle of the office cubicles was loud enough to break the eye contact between Judy and Nick as they looked up in surprise. "Yes, Chief?" Judy asked once the ox came into view. The Chief responded by throwing a thick tan case file onto the bunny's desk before promptly heading back to his office, but not before he gave Nick a knowing wink that Judy didn't see. Once the couple was left in silence, they merely stared at each other for a single second. The peace was disrupted when Nick bolted from his swivel chair to read the file, acting as if the case was the best they had ever had. Judy attempted to get out of her chair to reach the file first, but was much slower, resulting in Nick snatching up the paperwork first. " _Ugh_ , give it, Nick!"

"No way. You always get to read the cases first."

"You childish, sneaky, conniving…" Judy muttered as she finally was able to get to her feet for the second time in the last five minutes. "Well?" she asked impatiently. Nick looked up at her briefly to give her an exaggerated annoyed look before grudgingly handing her the file. "Weaselton is up to his old tricks again, this time in Sahara Square."

"He stole from a bank? That doesn't sound like Weaselton at all."

"I think that provides an even better reason to go find him."

"I'm right behind you." Grabbing their things, the couple left the ZPD and headed for Sahara Square. On the way, the two went over the basics of the case, such as where the weasel was last seen, how much money he had stolen from the bank, and possible leads. "This is it," Nick stated as he brought the SUV to a park along the side of the street. "The corner he was last seen on?"

"Yep. He was seen doing his usual Black Market sales."

"Let's look around."

"No, no, no, no, no. No can do. You aren't going anywhere like this-"

"Oh, save me the lecture and come on," Judy scoffed as she carefully slid from the passenger's seat onto the hot sidewalk below. Slightly concerned, as well as amused, Nick followed. Just as he was walking around the front of the car to join Judy, he heard a soft gasp. His ears shot up immediately. "Carrots?"

"Nick." As she said his name, Nick came around to find her leaning on the car, worry etched across her face. "Carrots!" He moved quickly, coming up beside her and placing his paws accordingly to hold her up. "What? What's going on?"

"I think my water just broke."

" _What_?"

"Look!" Nick did in fact look, only to feel horror creep into his chest at the sight of Judy's wet pants. "Okay, okay," he breathed unevenly, trying to think of what to do first while his mind reeled. "We have to go to the hospital."

"Get my bag first."

"Why?"

"Just get it!" Jumping at her raised voice, Nick quickly moved to open the back right door of the car. He looked around frantically before his eyes came upon Judy's black police backpack. "I've got it. Here," he breathed as he scooped the bag up and delivered it to Judy. She unzipped the bag and began digging through the contents as Nick began to talk nervously. "This can't be happening; you're only eight months pregnant! The babies are too early. Something could be wrong. We have to get you to the hospital immediately-what on earth are you doing?" Judy was shrugging out of her wet pants, only to reveal a second pair of pants underneath that were completely dry. Nick watched, completely dumfounded, as Judy slid the first pair of pants over her feet and then tossed them into her open backpack. "Carrots?"

"You should have seen the look on your face," she chuckled as she zipped the backpack and threw it at Nick, who almost didn't catch it, even after it slammed into the middle of his chest. "What-"

"A little bit of water, two pairs of nylon pants, a worried expression, and a very gullible fox are all you need to fake labor."

"Are you serious, Carrots? _Are you serious_? You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"I know! It was hilarious!"

"It most certainly wasn't!"

"Oh, lighten up. It was funny and you know it."

 _BANG!_

Judy and Nick jumped as a trash can fell over in a nearby alley. Following the noise came a scurry of feet moving quickly away. Judy's eyes met Nick's suddenly. "Weaselton. Go!" At her words, Nick took off for the alley, sliding easily into the entrance as he turned into the dark space. He withdrew his gun as he ran, remaining vigilant as he did so. He heard Judy following much farther behind as she went at her own pace, staying far away from any danger. Now well into the depths of the maze of alleys that wound between buildings, Nick stopped at a corner. Moments later, Judy caught up with him. "See him?"

"I think he went this way, but I can't be sure."

"I'm going."

"Carrots, no."

"It's my last day. Let me have a little fun."

"This isn't fun, this is dangerous. I'm not letting you go."

"You'll be right here the entire time, and I have my tranq gun. Everything will be fine, I promise." Nick's ear flattened against his head as he stared in the bunny's begging eyes. After a few seconds of the pleading look burrowing into his soul, he sighed. "Fine, but be careful, please."

"Got it," Judy grinned, excited for something new to do. "I'm going in." She gave Nick a swift kiss on the cheek before she carefully crept around the corner, gun cocked and ready. Making sure she was far enough around the corner, Nick pulled his phone out and pulled up Weaselton's contact. It sure was nice to have other con friends, even if you weren't one anymore. Peering around the corner to ensure Judy wouldn't see, Nick typed out a message to the weasel. "She's cming around the corner, u rdy?" Somewhat paranoid, Nick sent the message and then looked around the corner again, keeping an eye on Judy, who was nearing another turn in the alleyways. The fox couldn't help but grin at the elaborate prank he, the Chief, and the weasel had devised earlier in the day after Judy had sabotaged his chair. It hadn't taken long to achieve, only a bit of convincing, but he had pulled it off. The plan involved Weaselton hiding in the alley and giving Judy a bit of a fright. Not enough of a fright to send her into early labor, but enough to make her jump. She might even fire her tranquilizer gun at the weasel, but it would be useless, as Nick had filled it with blanks before they had left. Plus, after the stunt she had pulled with a water bottle earlier, Nick was more than ready for payback. He felt his phone buzz in his paw as a reply arrived. "Running late. Not there yet." Nick lowered his phone, the balloon in his chest rising. " _If Weaselton isn't here_... _then who is_?"

"Carrots!" Nick jumped around the corner to grab a defenseless Judy and pull her back, only to be completely stunned by the fact that she was gone. The alley was empty with an eerie silence. "Carrots!" He began walking swiftly, not really paying attention to his surroundings and definitely not caring whether or not there was another animal after him. "Carrots?" There was no reply as the ghostly silence remained. Nick continued to move forward, his paws shaking as he struggled to keep a grip on his tranquilizer gun and remove his communicator from his belt. Several horrible thoughts whirled through his mind, the majority focused on one subject in particular.

 _"Carrots, back off now! He isn't worth it!"_

Nick could hear his heart thumping harder and harder as the seconds ticked by. Shaking harder now, he bent down as he brought his communicator back up to his lips and held down one of the buttons on the side. "Carrots, answer me, please. Judy," he breathed before releasing the button to wait for a reply. The communicator crackled with some static, but there was nothing else.

 _"Officer down! Hopps is down! Need back up and medical attention at my location now!"_

The balloon in Nick's chest had expanded to the point that it disrupted his breathing, which was now shallow and rapid. The balloon was so full of tension that it was beginning to physically hurt his chest. "Oh, please, please, please answer," Nick whispered. He closed his eyes momentarily to pull himself together, but that only brought on more flashbacks.

 _"Alright, Judy, help is here. You hang in there, Rabbit."_

The images of a weak Judy caked in her own blood as it poured freely from the gaping wound in her neck filled Nick's brain.

 _"It's okay, Judy. It's going to be okay. I've got you."_

Then the weeks that followed her incident filled his thoughts as images of Judy in the hospital, the two of them fighting, her confessing her love for him, him asking her to be his girlfriend, her saying yes, and their first kiss flooded his vision. Nick opened his eyes and quickly held the communicator to his mouth again, ready to plead, but then thought better of it and snapped it back to his belt. He then took off into a full sprint, sliding around the next corner that came up at full speed. After running the full length of one alley, Nick dove to turn again when he collided into a slowly moving Judy. The two both yelped out in surprise as they fell to the ground in each other's arms. "Judy! Oh thank God!" Nick gasped as he helped Judy sit up. She said something, but Nick didn't catch it, as he was too busy smothering her in kisses and hugs to show just how thankful he was to see her unharmed. "Nick," Judy huffed as she attempted to tug him off of her briefly. "I'm having contractions, Nick." Nick didn't hear her again, still too bothered with trailing kisses over her shoulders, jaw line, and neck. "I was so worried," he whispered against her skin. Judy shivered at his touch, enjoying every moment of it, but she tried to stop him once more as the severity of the situation pressed down on her again. "Nick. Nick, stop it. I'm having- _Ugh_!" Another pain shot across Judy's abdomen, making her wince and lean heavily against Nick, who caught her as she moved forward. Instantly worried, Nick was now paying attention to the situation and realizing that something was very wrong. "Judy, what's wrong? Are you hurt?" Nick used his paws to look over Judy for injuries, but she stopped his paws with her own. He looked into her eyes and saw a great fear present in them. "I think I'm having contractions."

"Very funny, Rabbit, but I'm not falling for that again."

"No, I'm serious this time."

"Honestly, how stupid do you think I am-"

" _Nick_!" Nick's chest felt like it was collapsing after someone had taken a sledgehammer to it. "You're going into labor?"

"No, something isn't right. This isn't right." Nick tried to help Judy stand, but she couldn't stay on her feet without him heavily supporting her. "What do you mean?"

"Something doesn't feel right," Judy gasped as she leaned against him more. "I shouldn't be having contractions, and I had a pain like this a few months ago-"

"Wait, _what_? How long have you been having these pains?"

"Ever since the Baby Shower."

"Judy, that was almost four months ago!"

"I know, I know, but they haven't been this bad until today."

"Okay, okay," Nick breathed as he looked around frantically. "We've got to get you to a hospital."

* * *

 ** _I'm back, everyone! I apologize for the long wait, but if you have seen my profile lately, you'll see that I recently lost a very good friend of mine after she spent a year fighting Leukemia. This was very sudden and I needed to take some time to deal with it and find myself again. However, I'm feeling better now (still a little shaken, but better) and I am even in the process of making a website so that you readers can read some of my other stories that aren't fanfiction. I will let you know when it's up!_**

 ** _Love you all,_**

 ** _TatorTotTottish_**


	24. Chapter 24

"You're kidding!"

"I'm not, Mrs. Wilde."

"Nicholas must have had a heart attack."

"He definitely did, especially with him having set up that entire prank. He basically blamed himself for sending me into labor."

"But it wasn't labor?"

"Nope, Braxton Hicks, false contractions. They are completely normal, especially as I get closer to my due date."

"And how did Nicholas react when he learned they were false contractions?"

"While I was breathing a sigh of relief, he actually passed out. I had to drive him home." Mrs. Wilde snorted with laughter as Judy giggled along with her. It was early afternoon, and the two were seated at the kitchen island in Mrs. Wilde's home, where they had been for the last two hours as Judy told Nick's mother every detail of her last day of work. It had been a week since Judy's last day, and she had spent half of that day in the hospital, so she wasn't exactly thrilled to be stuck at home as Nick's work schedule remained unchanged. She would follow Nick around in the mornings as he got ready for the day, begging him to take her with him for just one hour. "It's not happening, Carrots."

"Why not?" Judy would whine. Nick would always roll his eyes, and then lean in and kiss Judy's pouting mouth before saying goodbye for the day. One day, he had even made a deal with her. "Really?"

"Yes, really. You can come with me."

"This is great-!"

"Eh, not so fast. You can come with me _if_ you can walk up the stairs without waddling."

"But that's impossible-"

"Then you can't come." Nick had then stood at the bottom of the steps with a large smirk on his face as he watched Judy attempt to walk up the stairs without turning her feet outward to accustom her new weight. "That's still waddling."

"It is not!" Judy yelled indignantly. "Everyone walks like this."

"Sure they do." Nick had then taken the two strides required to reach Judy's location, which was barely half way up the stairs after ten minutes, and kissed her before heading out for work as to not be late. The next day, Judy had blocked Nick's path to the door, her eyes fiery. "I am going to work with you today."

"Tell you what, if you can sit and stand up from a chair without my help, then you can come to work with me."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"Those are the terms. Take 'em or leave 'em." Nick had then watched Judy nearly tip a chair over as she fell into it, and then watched her nearly break her back trying to get up without his help. "Okay, okay. Stop before you hurt yourself."

"I can do it!"

"Carrots, you can barely walk or sit. You won't be comfortable in an office at work."

"But-"

"You have to pee like every five seconds, Rabbit! You can't even get up to do _that_."

"Fine, I guess you're right," Judy had sighed. Nick had then helped her up, kissed her goodbye, and Judy no longer begged him in the morning. She hadn't left the house until Nick had announced that he was taking her to his mother's house. "To be honest, the whole ordeal was pretty funny. I just felt bad for the nurses and doctor who had to deal with a scared, pregnant rabbit and a fox who couldn't calm down and take a breath."

"Yes, but that's their job, Honey. They get paid a lot of cash to help you through all of the ups and downs, the happy moments and the scary moments, so it's completely fine to go into the doctor's for apparently no reason if you feel you should."

"I guess that's true."

"So Nicholas was a bit secretive when dropping you off this morning, any idea why? He wouldn't tell me, and I'm his mother!"

"He's attempting to plan a big night for our Three-Year Anniversary," Judy grinned. "He dumped me on your doorstep to keep me from snooping more than I already have."

"That's sweet of him. In all my years of knowing Nicholas, I have never seen him step up as much as I have seen him step up now. Something about you, Judy, makes him different… but a good kind of different."

"Thank you, Mrs. Wilde, but to me, he's the same old Nick that hustled me to buy him and Finnick a Jumbo Pop all that time ago, and I'm glad he's the same, because that's the Nick I fell in love with."

"Carrots, I'm flattered." Both Judy and Mrs. Wilde jumped at Nick's voice. He was leaning against the doorframe in the entrance of the kitchen, paws in his pockets, and a smirk on his face. "Nick, you scared me!" Judy laughed as the fox came over and wrapped his arms around her for a hug. "Sorry, Darling, but I came to pick you up." Bidding farewell to Mrs. Wilde, the couple left Nick's mother's home and headed out onto Main Street. "Where are we going?"

"I thought you would like to say 'hi' to a couple of friends at work."

"Really?"

"I know you've missed work, so I thought it was only fair that you at least visit from time to time." Nick pulled the SUV into the parking lot of the ZPD and walked Judy into the lobby, where she took half an hour to catch up with everyone, even though it hadn't been long since she had last seen them. She spoke to Clawhauser the longest, who had been missing her dearly. After she had finished, Judy followed Nick back to the car. "Now, I wanna do dinner at our place tonight, but I'd like to grab a bite to eat at the diner," Nick stated as he put the SUV into reverse. "Sounds good to me," Judy smiled. They pulled into a parking space in front of the diner. They were seated at a booth near the front windows again before they were welcomed by a friendly waiter, who knew their orders by heart, of course. Once left alone, Nick turned to Judy. She was dressed in black leggings and an oversized logo t-shirt that had actually been his at one time. "Have I ever told you that you're beautiful?"

"Nick, I don't know what to say," Judy smiled, a slight blush tinting the color in her cheeks. Looking away slightly, she let a grin flash across her facial features as she attempted to compliment him back. "You are just-" Judy stopped suddenly. When she had looked away, her attention had partially focused on two deer sitting at a nearby table. It had taken her a second, but Judy realized that the two were whispering and glancing at her and Nick every now and then. The entire feeling of the situation put Judy on edge, which Nick noticed immediately. "Hey, Carrots, you okay?" Judy looked away and forced a smile on her face once more. "Yes! I'm fine, sorry, got distracted. What was I saying? Oh, well you are just too sweet to me. I don't deserve all of this." Nick gave Judy a suspicious glance, but said nothing of it, only continued the previously pleasant conversation. "You deserve a lot more. You do so much for me and I rarely tell you how grateful I am– Carrots?"

"Huh?"

"You keep dazing off. What are you looking at?"

"Nothing!" Judy quickly covered as she once again tore her attention from the two deer who were now paying their check and standing to leave. Nick saw the two deer, now getting ready to walk past the booth they were occupying and smiled pleasantly at them before turning back to Judy. Judy saw the disgusted reaction both of the deer had and almost said something, her ambition getting the best of her, but what the deer said next stopped her cold in her tracks. Whispering to one another, just loud enough to be heard as they passed Judy and Nick's booth, Judy caught bits of the conversation.

"…prey and predator. How distasteful…"

"…worse that it's interspecies…"

"…no respect at all…"

"…having children and probably married…"

"…what an abomination…"

Judy looked down at her swollen abdomen, her feelings mixing together as her thoughts whirled around in a dizzying cycle. Nick's voice seemed to come from a far away place. "Carrots?" Judy didn't answer, but looked up slightly to now direct her gaze at the edge of the table. Hot tears stung her eyes and began to run down her cheeks, the paths burning her already flushed face. She tried to tell herself that she was imagining things, that she didn't just hear what she thought she had just heard, but the facts were there, so she instead tried to remind herself that she was just emotional and probably overreacting. Nick's voice was there again, his tone low and slightly concerned. "Judy." Had she heard them correctly? She had never heard something so unsettling in her entire life. Should she do something? Judy suddenly felt an arm slink around her waist and felt a paw on the back of her neck as her body naturally leaned against Nick's, her face hidden in his shoulder. She heard Nick's voice in her ear, his breath hot against the base of her skull. "Come on, Judy." She felt Nick pull her up onto her feet and lead her from the restaurant, letting the hostess, Dawn, know to cancel their order as they passed through the doors. Nick guided Judy to their SUV, where he lifted her up into the passenger seat and slid in next to her, shutting the car door behind him. He then wrapped his arms around Judy once more and let her cry. Nick said nothing as he thought over what had just taken place. He had, in fact, heard the two deer, and had even moved to stand up and confront them, but that's when Judy had started crying. He had then made the split decision that she was more important in that moment. Nick knew that if Judy wasn't so far along in her pregnancy, she probably would have stood and caused an entire scene in the diner due to the nature of her personality, but it was clear that things were starting to get to her. She was always tired and emotional and scared now that her pregnancy was coming to an end; something was bound to make her snap at one point, but Nick had wished that it had been anything rather than what had just taken place. "Judy, it's okay. I'm right here." Judy let out a loud sob into his shoulder and gripped him tighter. Nick rested his head over hers and felt a pain in his heart for this little bunny. She deserved the world on a silver platter, not this amount of stress and tears. "I don't care what anyone else says, Judy. I love you, and that's all that matters."

Almost an hour later, Judy pulled herself together enough to let go of Nick so that he could drive them home. Once home, Judy went and collapsed down on their bed without a word, while Nick went out again to get her some chocolate from a nearby drug store. That night, the two didn't end up having a fancy dinner to celebrate their three long years together, but rather stayed in bed, eating chocolate and various things they found in the kitchen as they talked about a variety of topics. It wasn't the perfect evening that Nick had planned for, but it was wonderful for them just the same. "Hey, Carrots."

"Yeah?"

"Kids cost a lot of _bucks_ , you know?"

"That's the worse pun I've ever heard," Judy laughed for the first time since that afternoon. Nick smiled at the sound. "You know you love-"

"Don't even say it," Judy laughed again, while Nick faked a pout and smiled lazily. "Why not?"

"Because I love you, and that's all that matters."


	25. Chapter 25

"No."

"Please, Nick!"

"No, Carrots."

"I'm going."

"You're not going."

"You can't stop me."

"I beg to differ. You aren't going."

"Why not?"

"You don't need to go."

"Yes, I do! I have to fill out some paperwork."

"I'll fill it out myself."

"You aren't allowed to do that!"

"You aren't going to work, Carrots."

"I promise I won't be there long; a few hours at most, and I'll stay in my office the entire time."

"I don't feel comfortable with this."

"Ugh, why not?"

"You're nine months pregnant!"

Judy, now just a few days over forty weeks into her pregnancy, placed her paws on the small of her back and furrowed her brows as she glared at Nick. It was a warm Sunday evening and the two were in the babies' room, where everything was almost complete. The couple had found an old radio at a nearby garage sale and had set it up in the room to listen to music whenever they worked there. Now, the radio blasted a mix of pop songs and smooth jazz. Nick was nearly done with assembling the crib, while Judy had just finished packing the bag they would take to the hospital once she went into labor. Judy had been begging all weekend to accompany Nick to work on Monday morning so that she could ensure that everything was done and ready for her when she officially returned a few weeks after the babies' arrival. Nick, however, was very much opposed to the idea, mainly because Judy's due date was that upcoming Thursday, and he didn't like her overexerting herself if she didn't have to. They were in the final stretch; the tension was thick, and the anxiety was high. "Carrots, I just don't like this. I get this feeling."

"Feeling?" Judy smirked with raised eyebrows.

Nick rolled his eyes and stammered noises. "That's not what I– ugh, I _meant_ that I've been getting this feeling when something is about to happen. It's like a pressure in my chest."

"Nick, those are just nerves."

"But they aren't! I got this feeling when the babies kicked and on the night I proposed."

"Then it's excitement."

"Judy, would you stop folding clothes and listen to me?"

Besides the low clatter of ads playing in between songs over the radio, silence filled the room. Nick's temper was growing short, a rare occasion. Judy turned and looked at him, waiting patiently for him to continue. Nick took a deep breath and attempted to relax before continuing. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell."

"It's okay, Nick, I get it. I wasn't listening, but I am now. Go ahead."

"I'm not trying to hold you back," Nick sighed. "It's just that– well, I had this feeling when those great things happened, but I also had this feeling right before you started having Braxton Hicks in that alley, before you started bleeding in the hospital, and before you went into that warehouse with the polar bears. I know I sound crazy, but the babies are going to be here soon and I don't want to take any risks-" Nick stopped as Judy stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him as best she could with her large abdomen.

"I get it. You don't have to explain it to me, Nick."

Nick smiled and returned the hug. "So, you won't go to work?"

"No, I'm still going."

Nick dropped his paws and let out an exasperated, yet amused, sigh. "Carrots."

"Hey, I know you have your reasons for not wanting me to go, but I have my reasons for going. I don't want to go into labor at home all alone. I'll panic! I'm sticking with you."

Nick sighed again and kissed the top of Judy's head before taking her left paw into his right, where he briefly brushed over her engagement ring there. "Fine. You can come, but you have to promise me you won't do anything but sit in your office."

"Can I go steal donuts from Clawhauser?"

"Are you kidding me? That is _way_ too dangerous!"

Judy giggled. A slower song entirely done in piano came over the radio and filled the room. Nick slid his paws into Judy's and carefully lifted her onto his feet before sliding his paws around her so that he could safely dance around with her. Judy's abdomen kept a distance between the two, but they managed just the same as they danced to the entire song with smiles present on their faces. When the song was over, Nick looked at the still unfinished crib and sighed. "I'm done messing with that thing."

"Wanna go make s'mores in the microwave?"

"Damn right I do."

Laughing, the two made their way downstairs, where they made a mess in the kitchen before heading up to bed. In the morning, Nick awoke to find Judy already dressed for the day.

"Get up!" she laughed as she tossed a fluffed pillow at him. Nick groaned and tossed the pillow back at her.

"Go away," he mumbled into the mattress. "Come on, Sleepy Head, it's time to get ready for work– _uh_!"

Nick popped his head up as Judy let out a small gasp. "Carrots?"

"I'm fine."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong."

Nick pushed himself up from the bed and slid over the side to land on the carpeted floor near Judy.

"What is it?" he asked as he swept a glance over her.

"Nothing. I'm fine. I just have some pain in my back."

"You're staying home."

"No! I want to go, Nick."

"Your back hurts, which means you're staying home."

"I'm going whether you like it or not. Do not argue with me, I am pregnant and I will not hesitate to use my extra weight against you."

Nick rolled his eyes before giving her one last worried glance. With nothing apparently wrong, he went and showered for the day. Once ready, he found Judy down in the kitchen with the car keys in her paw. "I'm driving today."

"Isn't enough that you're going to work with me?"

"Nope."

On the ride over, Judy chatted about how excited she was, while Nick remained stiff as he watched the road with an unsettling gaze. All of their coworkers were confused, yet thrilled, to see a very pregnant Judy present at work, all except one.

"Hopps! Go home!" the Chief yelled over the railing from where he stood on the second floor just outside his office when he saw Judy and Nick enter the building.

"Not today, Chief! I'm here with Nick today."

The Chief threw an accusing glance in Nick's direction, which Nick immediately replied to with a shrug.

"She threatened me. What else was I supposed to do?"

The two strolled through the lobby, said a quick but thorough "hello" to Clawhauser, and then continued on their way to the ZPD offices. Nick had to help Judy into her swivel chair, but otherwise, she needed no assistance whatsoever. In fact, Judy was very much enjoying her day back, and she made sure that Nick knew. "I'm just _so_ excited!"

"I know, you've mentioned it a few times now."

Judy let out another stressed gasp. Nick's attention immediately turned from his computer screen to Judy. "You okay?"

"Yes, why?"

"You just groaned when you sat up. Does something hurt?"

"My back, just a little, but I promise I'm fine."

"You should have stayed at home."

"I'm fine, Nick. I'm sure it's just a knot in my back from not getting too much sleep lately."

"Here, I'll give you a back massage." Nick stood and made his way across the aisle to Judy's cubicle.

"Oh, Nick, you don't have to do that."

"If I don't have to do it, then why are you scooting forward in your seat?"

"Because you don't _have_ to, but you really _should_."

Nick laughed and placed his paws on Judy's upper back. Resting over the back of Judy's chair, Nick worked his paws through her muscles.

"That feels really good, but go a bit lower. It hurts in my lower back."

"Should we get that checked out?"

"No, it's just some sore muscles."

"Okay, if you say so." Nick then moved his paws down to her lower back and continued the massage.

"Oooh, ouch, never mind. You're making it worse," Judy breathed through a gasp of discomfort. Nick quickly withdrew his touch. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's okay. Don't be sorry, it wasn't your fault. I'm just a bit sore is all."

"I don't know, you really should be at home resting, Carrots."

"I'm fine, really."

A worried look on his face, Nick opened his mouth to apologize once more for making the pains worse, but was interrupted by a booming voice.

"Wilde!"

Nick turned to find a massive ox towering over him. "Yes, Chief?"

"In my office. Now." As the Chief turned and made his way from the ZPD offices, Nick looked down at Judy and sighed. "Wonderful."

"Don't worry, I'm sure it isn't bad."

"Well, I hope not. We can't support four kids on one salary."

Nick heard Judy's chuckle as he followed the Chief out into the lobby. The two stopped directly in front of the glass doors of the ZPD, where the Chief turned to look down at Nick.

"What's up, Chief?"

"I have a mission for you, Wilde."

"Alright, what am I looking at?"

"More like 'what are we looking at;' you're with me today, Wilde."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

Nick stayed silent for a moment as he attempted to comprehend what he had just been told. A mission with the Chief? This was huge for his career, wasn't it? Did this mean that the Chief trusted him? What about Judy, though? Would she be okay by herself for a few hours?

"What's the mission?"

"We're going to get some coffee."

Nick's amazed face turned sour in a matter of seconds. "Really?"

"Is there a problem, Wilde?"

"You just want coffee?"

"Sometimes I need some 'me time,' Wilde. You can either come with me or stay here and fill out my paperwork on top of yours."

"No problem at all, Sir. I'm up for coffee anytime." Nick followed Chief Bogo out through the glass doors and to the ox's police cruiser.

"Oh, wow, this hurts," Judy muttered as she attempted to stretch before she continued to type away on her computer. Just then, a certain overweight cheetah appeared, his face beaming as always.

"Judy! I never got to ask, but what are you doing here? You should be at home!"

"I know, I know. I'm getting ready to leave. I just had to finish up a few things." Judy continued typing away for another few seconds or so. "And there. We. Go," she finished with a tap of the keyboard to punctuate each word. "Mind helping me up?"

Clawhauser happily took hold of both of Judy's outstretched paws and slowly helped her rise from her swivel chair. "Should I find you a ride home?"

"Nah, Nick can drive me."

"Nick just left with the Chief." Judy let out a heavy sigh that consisted of both agitation and discomfort.

"Okay, that's fine. When do you think they'll be back?"

The cheetah gave a half-hearted shrug. "Not sure. Sorry, Judy."

"That's okay. I'll just call him. Can you hand me my phone, Clawhauser?" Judy gestured to her phone that was sitting on her desk, just out of reach from where she stood. "Sorry, I'm a little restricted right now," she laughed as the cheetah handed her the device with a big smile and a couple of "no problem, Judy"s. Placing a paw on her back to balance herself, Judy quickly found Nick's contact and dialed his number. Patiently, she put the phone to her ear and waited. Just then, a small chime began to sound from Nick's cubicle.

"What is that?" Clawhauser asked as he looked around for the source of the music. Judy threw her phone down onto her desk and angrily let out a deep breath.

"That's his freaking cell phone. He left it here, ugh!" Judy tugged on her ears in frustration, trying to keep her cool. She had been excited to be at work today, but now that it was almost noon, she was beginning to grow more and more frustrated with each agonizing pain in her back. Clawhauser shuffled his feet nervously as he waited for her to calm down; he was not trained to deal with a feisty little bunny mom-to-be. After a few moments of Judy's agitated sighs, she finally relaxed. Leaning on her desk to even out her imbalance in weight, she looked back at Clawhauser. "I think I could use that ride now."

"I'm right on it!" Clawhauser stated with joy now that he had something to do in his area of expertise. Clawhauser then bounded off as fast as he could, which unfortunately, wasn't very fast, leaving Judy to pack up her things. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Judy's spine down to her abdomen.

"Ohhhh wow," she breathed as she closed her eyes against the new pain. Clawhauser came back and asked if she was okay, but Judy wasn't listening; the pain was too distracting. At first, Judy didn't think much of this pain; she simply thought it was just another Braxton Hick, which was nothing to worry about. However, it was four of these unique pains later that Judy began to feel a growing pressure in her lower abdomen, and with that pressure, reality struck.

"I'm going into labor," Judy whispered, absolutely mortified as she looked up at a very fearful Clawhauser. "And Nick isn't here."


	26. Chapter 26

"Chief Bogo here." Nick and Chief Bogo had been driving back to the ZPD, coffee cups in hand, laughter and jokes filling the car, when the Chief's phone had begun to buzz loudly. The Chief had almost veered the car into another lane as the voice that came from the other end of the call made him jump. "Give the phone to Nick!"

"Excuse me, Hopps-"

" _Give him the damn phone_!" Absolutely stunned, the Chief practically threw his phone in Nick's direction, all while muttering "it's for you." Nick had laughed, not very concerned due to the fact that he was still completely oblivious to the situation, and had brought the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

"Nick?"

"That's my name, don't wear it out."

"Nick, now is not the time."

"Who is this?"

"You know exactly who this is!"

"Oh, Carrots! Geez, it's been a while, huh?"

" _Nick_!"

"God, lighten up, Carrots. I'm just joking around-"

"I'm in labor."

"Hmm?"

"Are you even listening to me? _I just went into labor_. I need you here _right now_."

"Aw, can't I finish this cup of coffee first?"

" _Nick_!"

"Kidding!"

"You definitely weren't!"

"It's probably just another Braxton Hick, Carrots. Relax."

"I've had almost six in the last hour. These are _real_." Nick's breath caught in his throat, making him cough slightly. He felt the balloon in his chest fill so rapidly with air, it seemed to explode. Almost four years of knowing Judy, three years of dating, nine months of expecting babies; all of it led to this. " _What_?"

" _I am in labor and you need to get here now_!" Eyes watering from the ragged cough, Nick went into full gear, somewhat ready for the situation. "Uhm, how far apart are your contractions?"

" _I don't know_! I'm not paying attention!"

"Okay, I want you to take a deep breath and relax. We are on our way." Nick motioned to the phone and then mouthed "ZPD" for the Chief to see, which he agreed to with a silent nod. He then turned his full attention back to Judy again. "Where are you?"

"In the lobby."

"At the ZPD, right?"

" _Where the hell else would I be_?"

"Good point; that was a stupid question."

"You think?"

"How are you?"

"I hurt everywhere and I am feeling everything, how do you think I am?" Judy let out a groan as another contraction struck her. Nick felt his heart ache at the thought of not being there to help her through what was bound to be one of the most important moments in her life. When he was sure the contraction was over and only the sound of Judy's heavy breathing could be heard, Nick spoke again. "I'm almost there. You are doing great."

"I don't think I can do this, Nick." Her voice was shaky as it wavered with pain and fear. "Carrots, you can do this."

"I can't!"

"Yes, you can, okay? Just listen to me."

"No, I can't! I can't! _I can't do this!_ " A feeling shot through Nick's heart as if it were breaking. If he could be anywhere in the world in that instant, he would be right next to Judy, but right now, that wasn't happening and Judy was panicking. "Carrots, it's going to be okay. I'm right here."

"But you aren't! You aren't here!"

"I am, listen to my voice."

"Nick?"

"Yes?"

"I'm scared."

"I am too… but we are going to get through this, okay?"

"O-okay, okay."

"Just breathe, alright?"

"Nick, I've been breathing." Nick rolled his eyes, but stopped when he heard Judy's voice again. "I swear to God I can _hear_ you rolling your eyes." Then, they were laughing, laughing at everything that they had experienced in the last ten months, in the last four years. They were laughing because they were scared. They were laughing because they loved one another. They were laughing because they were starting a family. They laughed for several minutes until reality struck when Nick heard Judy's laughing cease as another contraction hit her with the force of a tidal wave. "How ya doing?"

"I'm going to kill you for putting me through this."

"Hey, we've discussed this; I'm too handsome for that."

"I'm serious. You are dead, road kill, food for bugs."

"Ah, I would believe you if you had life insurance on me." Nick heard Judy give an agitated sigh and couldn't help but smile, which just like his eye roll, was cut short. "Don't smile," she snapped. "I'm not smiling," Nick lied with ease. "Don't lie to me either."

"I'm not lying-"

"I know you are lying, Nick! Ugh, do you _want_ me to kill you?"

"Even if I answer 'yes' to that question, you are in no state to carry out such actions."

"I hate when you're right." With his mouth hanging open, Nick turned to the Chief. "You heard that, right? You heard her say I'm right?"

" _Nick_!" Judy's screech made Nick jump a foot, resulting in him nearly dropping the Chief's phone. In the background, the Chief was snickering quietly at the spectacle that was taking place, completely forgetting how he had also jumped when Judy had screamed at him earlier on. Quickly collecting himself, Nick put the phone to his ear, and began speaking in his "sweet" voice. "Yes, Love?"

" _Shut up_!"

"Yes, Love." Judy was attempting to throw another insult at Nick when she was cut short, her voice turning into a painful breath. "Carrots? How ya doing?"

"My water just broke." This time, it was Nick that let out a painful breath. "Are you sure?"

"Oh, _I don't know, Nick_ , I may have just pissed my pants, because that sure does happen often!" Nick put his paw over the receiver and turned to the Chief. "Step on it, this is happening." The Chief nodded without a word and Nick began to speak to Judy again. "We're on the way. Do you think you can make it?"

"How far are you?"

"Seconds away at most."

"Yeah, I think so."

"Okay, just hold on."

"I can't believe this is really happening. The last nine months went by so fast."

"That's what you think," Nick muttered. "What was that, Nick?"

"Oh, uh, nothing."

"It better have been nothing."

"Just keep breathing, Carrots."

"Labor really sucks-Oooh."

"What happened?"

"Another contraction."

"How do you feel?"

"How do _you_ think I feel? I'm having four babies!"

"Believe it or not, I knew that." When they arrived at the ZPD, Chief Bogo didn't even fully stop the car before letting Nick out. In less than a second, Nick was out of the car and practically flying as he bolted into the building, every muscle in his body screaming out in protest. He slammed past the glass doors and into the lobby. "Carrots?"

"Here!" Judy was leaning against the reception desk, one paw keeping her balanced against the desk and the other holding one of Clawhauser's paws. Although she was much smaller in comparison, Judy was managing to squeeze part of Clawhauser's paw so hard that he was actually wincing. Nick wasted no time in running over and swooping Judy up into his arms. "Oh God, you're heavy," Nick huffed as he nodded at Clawhauser, who was cradling his crushed paw, before he began making his way back outside. "Now is _so not the time_ , Nick!"

"You are also soaking wet."

"What did you think 'my water just broke' meant?" Nick rolled his eyes and quickly, but carefully, carried Judy out of the ZPD and into the backseat of the cruiser. He laid Judy down across the seats head first and then slid in beside her, shutting the door as he did so. The Chief immediately hit the accelerant and began making his way to the hospital with police lights flashing. Judy readjusted so that she was partially sitting up while still lying across the seats. Nick reached over and rubbed one of her arms soothingly with his paw. "We're almost there, Carrots," he stated reassuringly. Judy took a deep breath and closed her eyes momentarily. "God, this hurts."

"You are doing great, just keep breathing."

"Give me your paw."

"I don't think that would be the best idea-"

" _Give me your paw, Nicholas_!"

"Okay! Okay, here- _Ah_!"

"What are you complaining about? I'm the one in pain!"

"I know, I know. How far apart are the contractions now?"

"You aren't keeping track?"

"Should I be?"

" _Nick_!"

"Sorry! I'm keeping track now, I promise-"

"No, I'm having another one!"

"Okay, I'm keeping track– watch the paw!"

"Ooooh, ouch!"

"Just keep breath– and my paw is definitely broken."

"Stop being overdramatic!"

"Yes, Dear," Nick said sarcastically with a pained, yet lazy, expression. Almost eight minutes, and one more contraction later, the Chief pulled his police cruiser directly in front of the automatic doors that marked the entrance of the hospital. Nick slid out of the car and helped guide Judy out and into his arms. Shutting the door with his hip, Nick began carrying Judy into the hospital as the Chief sped away to finding a parking spot in the parking complex. Judy gripped onto the front of Nick's shirt tightly as the fox hurried to the receptionist desk, where a very kind looking otter sat behind a computer. "Hi, uh, we're having a baby– well, my wife– uh, my fiancé is having a baby – no, four babies actually, and we-"

"Oh my God– I went into labor about twenty minutes ago," Judy stated shortly as she cut a stammering Nick off. The otter smiled pleasantly and quickly found them a nurse to lead them to a room. It didn't take long for a few nurses to help Judy get settled in a decent sized hospital delivery room. Once as comfortable as she could manage, Judy helped Nick fill out the hospital forms. She then waited patiently as Nick began calling family to inform them of the news. "Call your mother first."

"Why?"

"Because I like your mother."

"If we call her first, then she will be here in seconds."

"I fail to see the problem, just call her." Nick sighed and dialed his mother's home phone number. It didn't take long for her to answer. "Hey, Mom … Well, that's why I'm calling. We are at the hospital and- … No, no, we're fine. It's just that- … Mom, would you let me talk? … I'm not being rude, just– ugh, Judy went into labor … Ow, you're going to blow my ears out, stop shouting … I- … Okay … Well, wait now. You don't have to come right-" Nick stopped talking as his mother disconnected the call, already in full swing to arrive at the hospital soon. Nick looked at Judy with a smirk. "You brought this on yourself." Nick then called Judy's parents and let them now as well. Although the bunny couple was leaving immediately, it would still be hours before they arrived. Once all of his responsibilities were taken care of, Nick snuggled into Judy's hospital bed next to her. Still experiencing contractions every now and the, Judy laid her head on Nick's shoulder. "I'm exhausted already."

"Sleep a little."

"I don't know if I can."

"Just try. I promise I won't let my mother wake you when she comes and busts the door down." Judy giggled softly, and then without another sound, she dozed off while still leaning on Nick. Nick's mother arrived ten minutes later, but she only found a fox and a bunny curled up asleep in bed together, both temporarily safe from reality.


	27. Chapter 27

It was nearly three in the morning the following day when the news finally came. "Alright, Mom, I think we're just about ready to do this." Judy looked at Nick with worry in her eyes. "When she says 'we're,' does that include me?" Nick nodded his head and chuckled. "You know, I'm not the smartest when it comes to all of this baby stuff, but I do think that her word choice included you, especially since she said 'Mom.'"

"I was afraid of that," Judy sighed, making Nick smile again. He then took her paw in his paw and kissed the back of it gently. "You've got this." Judy took a deep breath before closing her eyes and shaking her head, trying not to cry. "I don't. I'm going to mess this up just like I do everything else."

"Hey, hey," Nick leaned in and dropped his voice to a soothing whisper. "You don't mess anything up at all."

"I do! I mess things up all of the time."

"And so does everyone else, but you don't mess up all of the time, and you aren't going to mess this up." Judy sniffled. "How do you know?"

"Because I know you." Judy smiled briefly before another crashing contraction hit, making her clamp her jaw shut and focus on not crying out. She then let out a small sob after it had passed. "I can't do this."

"Carrots, listen to me, you can do this, okay?"

"Okay," Judy nodded, tears still filling her eyes. "I love you, Nick." At first, Nick didn't reply. The feeling in his chest hadn't gone away since Judy had called and told him that she had gone into labor, but right now, the feeling changed slightly, making him aware of it all over again. In the beginning, when the feeling was a rare occasion, Nick had thought that it would go away after Judy gave birth to the babies, but now, he realized that this feeling was permanent. It showed that he cared, that he worried. It was the only thing that would always make him know when something dangerous like a polar bear attack was about to happen, it was the only thing that would always make him know when to grab and hold out a trashcan just in time, it was the only thing that would always make him know when Judy was about to slip and fall so that he could catch her, it was the only thing that would always make him know when something special like a baby kicking was about to happen; it was the only thing that would always make him a wonderful father and a wonderful husband. In that moment, Nick looked directly into his life mate's brilliantly bright amethyst eyes, but the feeling in his chest told him not to say "I love you too." Instead, he said something that held a much deeper meaning. "Marry me."

"What?"

"Marry me."

"You already proposed, like twice-"

"No, marry me right here, right now. Just the two of us."

"But that's not an official thing-"

"I know it's not, and we will still have a huge wedding for our friends and family, but I want to marry you before we have kids. I want to marry you when it's just the two of us. I want to marry you and then marry you again, but know that I have already married you. I want to marry you right now." Judy was speechless, tears now streaming down her cheeks. "Mom, we ready?" Slightly distracted, Judy nodded at the doctor before turning back to Nick. "Okay, I'll marry you. Right now." Nick grinned, wrapping her right paw in both of his paws. Judy grinned back at him, before kissing him gently on the nose. "Do you, Nicholas Piberius Wilde, take me, Judy Laverne Hopps, to be yours?"

"I do… Do you, Judy – Carrots – Laverne Hopps, take me, Nicholas Piberius Wilde, to be yours?"

"I do."

"Well then I may kiss the bride." Judy giggled as Nick leaned in and kissed her full on the mouth. When the broke apart, the doctor was speaking again. "Mom, on the next contraction, I'm going to need you to push." Judy nodded again. "Here we go," Nick said before standing up from his seat. With the aid of a nurse, he then helped readjust Judy's bed so that she was in a sitting position, her legs open and spread wide at the opposite end. Nick then placed an arm around Judy's upper back, his other paw still entangled with hers. There it was again; the feeling. It hit Nick quickly, but he instantly knew what it meant. Leaning in one last time, Nick kissed Judy on the top of her head and whispered a speedy "I love you," right before the contraction that he knew was coming hit Judy with all of its might. "Push!"

" _Ah_!" Gripping Nick's paw, Judy bent forward and put all of her energy into the action of delivering, but it wasn't easy or painless. The doctor counted for ten seconds, although to Judy, it seemed like ten hours. "Come on, Carrots, you got this," Nick stated as he tried to ignore the pain in his paw as Judy crushed it. When the doctor finally reached ten, Judy hissed with pain before lying back against the pillow in short-lived relief. "Alright, one more big push, Mom."

"Oh God, I'm never doing this again," Judy muttered with closed eyes. Nick smirked, but furrowed his eyebrows as he thought over her statement. "Wait, we aren't doing this again, right?" Judy ignored him, primed and ready for the next set of instructions. "Alright, push!" This time, ten seconds weren't needed; at about four seconds, the news came "There's Baby 1! Congratulations, Mom and Dad, you have a little baby boy."

"That's Robin," Judy breathed as her first child was held up for her to see. Robin was a little fox whose fur was that of a soft maroon color. His eyes were a shade of green lighter than Nick's and his ears were absolutely massive, almost bigger than his entire body. Robin screamed his tiny little head off as a nurse quickly took him and began cleaning him up in the corner of the room. Nick let his gaze follow the nurse as she carried Robin away, but Judy didn't have time to enjoy her first child; she had three more to worry about. "Here we go, Mom. Push!" Another ten agonizingly slow seconds went by, but for Judy, it seemed to go by a little faster, with a huge reward at the end. "And Baby 2 is another boy!"

"If I'm not color blind, that's Red," Nick smirked at his second son, a fox that was a tiny Nick Wilde with violet eyes. A second set of cries filled the room as baby Red was also taken to receive his cleaning. Judy took a deep breath and let it out slowly before laying her head back on her starched hospital pillow. Nick leaned down and kissed her forehead softly. "You're doing great, Carrots."

"I feel horrible."

"You look horrible."

"I hate you."

"I love you too," Nick chuckled. "Half way there, Mom. You ready?" Judy nodded feebly and attempted to sit herself up slightly for the next contraction, but this time around, Nick had to aid her more than before, which he noticed with growing concern. "Okay, and push!" Judy squeezed Nick's paw much tighter this time, but the fox simply grit his teeth and let her. The effort paid off, though, as their third child arrived almost half a second later. "Baby 3! Another boy!"

"That's Alan. I can already picture him in a suit," Judy laughed quietly. Just like Red, Alan was the spitting image of Nick, pure fox all around; even his eyes shone a brilliant green. However, his fur maintained the dark and light gray color mix of Judy's. Judy let out another laughing breath. "Of course I have three boys who are all foxes and look just like you!"

"Hopefully they don't act like me," Nick smirked, making Judy laugh once more before needing another quick rest. "Alright, Mom, I need you to keep your energy up. We're almost done," the doctor stated loud enough to be heard over Alan's cries. "And... push!" Ten seconds came and went, and then another ten seconds, and then another, and another, but nothing occurred. Nick's ears were glued flat to his head as he attempted to coach Judy on, despite her clear exhaustion. She had let go of his paw awhile ago to replace it with the handles set on the sides of her hospital bed, and it had left Nick feeling very lonely. If something was wrong, there was nothing Nick could do. This time, he was on the sidelines. Half way through the fifth time of counting to ten, Judy collapsed back onto the bed and ceased all of her effort. "I can't do this!" she gasped. "Mom, you're almost done-"

" _I said I can't do this_!" Judy snapped at the doctor, who immediately retreated. Nick reached for Judy's paw, but the bunny quickly snatched it back from his reach. "Carrots, you're almost done-"

"Does it look like I'm almost done? We've been at this for _hours_!"

"I know, I know. It's exhausting and it's painful, but I promise we are going to get through this. We've made it this far."

"I can't do this, Nick," Judy sighed heavily. Nick knotted his eyebrows and gave her a very severe look. "Judy Hopps, the ambitious bunny who risks everything to solve even the smallest of cases, beaten by four babies?"

"What? No, that's not-"

"I'm going to have to tell the entire precinct about this."

"Wait! I didn't-"

"I thought you never quit, Judy." Nick's words hit a nerve deep within Judy, who felt on fire as soon as the sentence reached her ears. "When I'm done with this, I'm going to kill you." The way Judy hissed "this" made Nick smirk, knowing that he had convinced her that this was nothing more than another job on her list. Still slightly mocking her, Nick took Judy's paw once more and nodded at the doctor. "Okay, push!" Thankfully, ten whole seconds weren't needed this time. " _Ugh_!" With one final breath, instant relief flowed through Judy's body. "Here's Baby 4! Oh, isn't she beautiful?" The doctor held up the one and only bunny and the one and only girl out of all four children. She was a little Judy, from the shade of her fur and the color of her eyes to her overall tiny size. "Violet," Nick and Judy said together with big smiles. Judy had tears streaming down her face now. They cleaned up a shrieking Violet before taking all four babies from the room to do a routine checkup to ensure the children were completely healthy. Nick kissed Judy full on the mouth as the doctor congratulated the two. The happy moment was short-lived, however, as Judy slowly leaned back onto her pillow, her eyes fluttering shut as she did so. "Carrots?" Monitors surrounding Judy's hospital bed began beeping frantically, alerting every nurse in the room to act quickly. Nick remained very still as chaos erupted around him. "Judy?" With doctor's orders that Nick didn't hear, nurses rolled Judy's bed from the room, leaving Nick completely alone. Seven hours of labor, seven hours filled with just the right words meant for soothing Judy through each contraction, seven hours filled with holding Judy's paw as various shots and types of pain medication were given to her, and seven hours filled with smiling and some laughing at the reality of the situation. After seven hours filled with Judy on top of the four previous years that had been filled with Judy, Nick was left all alone.


	28. Chapter 28

**Ten months later...**

"Alan, stop pulling on your sisters ears. You know that isn't nice," Nick stated as he carefully removed Alan's little paws that were tightly wrapped around Violet's floppy ears. His attention was quickly divided, however, as he noticed another one of his sons flailing an arm with a sippy cup in his grasp. "Red! No throwing things, please." Nick gave the toddler a firm, yet amused glance. The child babbled happily before throwing the cup as far as he could manage. Nick caught the cup with ease before setting it out of reach on the kitchen counter. Sighing lightly, Nick leaned his lower back against the counter and looked over the kitchen, which was an absolute mess. Red was seated in a highchair as he munched on a cup of dry cereal that Nick had poured for him, Alan and Violet sat on the tiled floor as they played with a variety of toys that were scattered about, and Robin crawled around aimlessly as he shrieked with laughter whenever Red threw a piece of cereal down onto the floor. Nick smiled at his kids, trying to ignore the mess they were causing. The entire house was in various degrees of messiness, in fact, but Nick didn't really mind it. He enjoyed finding toys all over the house, or finding different types of snacks hidden in couch cushions or blankets; it only reminded him of his adorable children. He didn't necessarily enjoy falling down the stairs after stepping on a small toy car, and he certainly didn't love when he found rotten fruit that Alan had expertly hid when it was ripe, which he had a habit of doing, but Nick let the pros outweigh the cons when it came to his children. On this lovely Saturday that he didn't have any plans for, Nick found the time to enjoy his free time with the kids. It was late morning, but the children had been up since the early hours of the day after going to sleep very late the night before, leaving Nick with a permanently sleepy expression for the day. Still leaning against the counter, Nick reached over and picked up his coffee mug, which he took a large swig from before sighing once more. It was pleasant moments like these that made him think back over the last few months, the last few months that had been eventful as the kids learned to sit up on their own, eat solid foods, and crawl around without needing too much help. Although exciting, the last few months had also been filled with several all-nighters, hours of listening to screaming and crying, and several different tantrums, but again, Nick liked to let the pros outweigh the cons, so he quickly wiped the bad pieces from his memory. In this game of endless good and bad moments called life, Nick noticed that Judy was the factor that put everything into perspective. When thinking of her, he always thought about the bad events first, letting them haunt him for a few seconds. Over the years, Judy had scared him several different times; he had seen Judy bleed, heard her screams, seen her cry, and so much more. How could he not love her after everything they had been through?

 _"Judy."_

Nick shivered as he thought of the last time Judy had scared him, the time that had put him on edge more than any other.

 _"Is she going to be okay? Please. Is she going to be okay?"_

On a day that had been marked with such excitement as the couple welcomed their four newest members, Nick had also been frightened beyond all belief. Nick closed his eyes momentarily as he let the events of that day repeat in his mind.

 _"Nicholas, stop pacing, everything is going to be fine."_

 _"This isn't fine, Mom! Tell me, does anything seem fine to you right now?"_

 _"Things like this happen."_

 _"They don't! They don't just happen!"_

 _"You need to be prepared."_

 _"Prepared for what?"_

 _"You know..."_

 _"No, I don't know. Be prepared for what?"_

 _"Be prepared if she doesn't make it."_

 _"You did not just say that to me."_

 _"Nicholas, listen. If something happens to her, can you manage four children on your own?"_

 _"I don't know, Mom. Why are you asking me these things? Can't you be considerate for five seconds?"_

 _"You need to be thinking about these things. Can you manage to take care of the children while also working, all while paying for the house, and the bills, and food?"_

 _"I don't know."_

 _"Can you do this alone?"_

 _"_ I don't know _!"_

That day, he hadn't known at all. Though what his mother had said was completely reasonable in the situation, Nick hadn't been ready to accept her words. Neither had Judy's parents, or her entire family for that matter. In fact, Nick's mother had been the only one ready to accept the worst case scenario.

 _"What happened?"_

 _"Her placenta ruptured, causing some heavy internal bleeding."_

 _"I thought you fixed that months ago, Doctor."_

 _"Complications can occur, Mr. Wilde."_

 _"Is she going to be okay?"_

 _"We've taken her up to surgery and we are doing everything we can."_

Nick shook his head and came back to reality as he felt the familiar sting of tears in his eyes. Wiping his eyes quickly, Nick turned his attention back on his children, focusing on the present rather than the past. Robin was attempting to open a childproofed drawer, while Alan was pulling on Violet's ears again as Red showered them all in cereal. Nick smiled and lifted Red from his highchair. He then worked carefully to pick the other three small children up, juggling them in a skilled manner as he made his way upstairs and into the kids' room. Once there, Nick placed them in their crib with a few stuffed toys, turned on the baby monitor, turned out the lights, and left the room to allow the children to nap for just a few hours before lunch. Nick went into his room, where he collapsed on the bed and took a deep breath. Keeping his eyes wide open as to keep from falling asleep, Nick stared up at the ceiling and let his thoughts wonder once more.

 _"What am I going to do without her?"_

 _"You'll get through this, Wilde. I have faith in you. If you need anything, let me know."_

 _"Thanks, Chief."_

"Nick?" Nick sat up and quickly opened his eyes that had managed to close as his thoughts began to slip into the beginning of dreams. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?" Judy giggled as she set down the car keys on the dresser. Two weeks after the birth of their children and Judy's surgery, the bunny had gone right back to work, but only for a few hours a day. Now a days, she had a permanent smile etched on her face as she went through life with nothing but happiness in her heart. The workout that police work gave her also aided in Judy easily losing the excess weight the babies had given her in the nine months they were expected for. She looked fantastic. "Not at all, Darling," Nick smirked as he held out a paw for her to join him. "I put the groceries away, sorry it took so long; the store was crazy," Judy laughed as she laid down next to Nick. "Where are the kids?"

"Napping, hopefully," Nick shrugged. Judy snuck a glance at Nick's face before looking up at the ceiling and speaking again. "You look like you just saw a ghost, are you okay?"

"I was just thinking about something."

"About what?"

"The day the kids were born."

"Ah, that day was amazing."

"Not all of it."

"That's because you're thinking about the bad parts. Try thinking about the good parts."

 _"Oh, Nick! Look at their little faces!"_

 _"They're all so tiny."_

 _"They are just absolutely precious. I can't believe we made these cute little things. I mean, look at you, Nick, you're downright ugly, so this was like a miracle."_

 _"Oh, so Mom's got jokes, huh?"_

 _"I'm tired, can you blame me?"_

 _"No. No, not at all. In fact, all I can do is thank you. I love you, Judy."_

 _"I love you too, Nick._ _"_

 _"Stop crying, you're going to make me cry."_

 _"What are you talking about, you're already crying!"_

Nick smiled at Judy. "You're right. That was a pretty good day."

"I told you that I wasn't going to let four little babies beat me," Judy chuckled. "I guess I should have taken your word for it, Carrots."

"You really should have. I'm always right."

"Sure you are. Remember the polar bear incident?"

" _This is all my fault_."

"You're never going to let me live that one down."

"Or the fox in the alley?"

 _"It's okay, Judy. It's going to be okay. I've got you."_

"I actually have chosen to forget about that one," Judy snorted. She then smiled and turned to look at Nick. "You always focus on the negative, Drama Queen."

"Not always. Remember the first day we met?"

 _"…Officer...?"_

 _"Hopps! Mr…?"_

 _"Wilde, Nick Wilde."_

"I do remember that day!" Judy giggled, making Nick smile as he thought about when he had hustled the bunny. "Remember when you proposed, Nick?"

 _"Carrots, will you marry me?"_

"How could I forget? I also remember when you told me you were pregnant during that huge birthday party you threw for me."

 _"Nick, I'm pregnant."_

 _"Wow."_

"The party where you accused me of cheating on you?"

 _"Y-you think I'm_ c-cheating _on you?"_

"Ugh, don't remind me."

"I guess I shouldn't remind you of the pictures from your Bachelor's Party too, huh?"

" _Delgato looks like a good kisser."_

"You always have to bring that up, don't you?"

"It brings me joy."

"Oh, well then don't forget about Valerie."

 _"You can't be serious. You are not about to remain partners with her to spite me!"_

 _"I think I already am."_

Judy's expression turned sour. "Ugh, don't bring her up." Nick chuckled before planting a kiss on Judy's cheek. "I'm just joking, Carrots, but I really do love our memories; they amaze me to think that I have spent so much time with you when it seems like it has only been a few seconds."

"I feel the exact same way," Judy smiled sweetly, her eyes gleaming. "Hey, Carrots, I love you, you know that?"

 _"I love you, too, Darling."_

"Of course, and I love you too."

 _"I think I – no, I know I-I love you. I love you, Nick."_

Nick leaned over and lifted himself onto one arm. "No, but I really love you," he stated. Judy sat up slightly too and chuckled. "I know, Nick. I really love you too."

"I can't really explain it, though."

"Explain what?"

"Explain how happy I am. Explain how grateful I am that you're safe and laying next to me right now."

 _"You muzzle me, but you know, in a good way. I love the way you muzzle me."_

"Aw, Nick, come on. Enough of that cute stuff."

"I'm serious, though."

"I know, and I feel the same way for you, but you don't need to worry, because I'm not going anywhere."

 _"Yes, I'll be your girlfriend, Nicholas IDon'tCareWhatYourMiddleNameIs Wilde."_

A small cry erupted from the receiving end of the baby monitor that was strategically placed on Judy's bedside table. Judy let out a little laugh as she collapsed back onto the bed dramatically. "I got it," she smiled as she stood, kissed Nick on the nose, and left to go and soothe the crying child. A few minutes later, the crying stopped and Judy returned. "All good," she smiled with a thumbs up. "For like five minutes, maybe," Nick laughed. Judy gave him an agreeing look before lying back down onto the bed. "So what should we do for five minutes?" she asked. Nick pretended to think this question through before grinning. "Sleep."

* * *

 _ **There you have it! I honestly became really emotional while writing this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy it. This is the end of "Family," but here pretty soon, I will be creating a collection of one-shots called "Little Firsts" that will follow the family through important events such as the babies' first steps, first words, and so on, so be looking for that. I will also be doing a one-shot or a story (I haven't decided yet) that will tell the story of Judy and Nick's wedding, so that is in store too. I hope everyone enjoyed this! It took almost three months to write and had over twenty thousand views, so thank you all for your loyal support to this story!**_

 _ **Love you all,**_

 _ **TatorTotTottish**_


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